


All That Glitters Is Gold

by jenunjen96816



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-11
Updated: 2019-11-28
Packaged: 2020-06-27 02:27:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 25,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19781362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jenunjen96816/pseuds/jenunjen96816
Summary: AUAn ambitious archaeologist meets a nature-loving park ranger in one of the last remote frontiers in America, and together, they make a startling discovery…





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First off – congrats to the girls on winning another world cup! So happy!
> 
> I’ve been gone for a while from AO3 (real life got in the way), but I got this idea in my head, and I’m going to try to stick with it and finish it up.
> 
> This story is set in a fictional town in North Carolina, mostly because my geographic knowledge of that part of the country is pretty terrible and I don’t know what any of the real towns are like. Also, I reference some disciplines like archaeology and minerology that I don’t know much about, so I apologize in advance for any falsities, but anything I reference is just there to set context and drive the story.
> 
> Thanks so much to everyone who has PM'd me and asked me to start writing again. As always, I thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy the story.

The park ranger entered a clearing and then paused at the top of the precipice. She looked up at the sky and shielded her eyes, the August sun blazing above. Then she looked down at the gulley below. A shallow stream about ten feet wide ran over a pebble creek bed. The ranger pulled her canteen from her backpack and took a long drink. Almost out of water, she thought as she drained the last drop, and her eyes sought a trail down to the creek.

A few minutes later she reached the creek bed. She crouched down to fill her canteen and then took another long drink, then put her canteen back in her backpack. She leaned over, cupped her hands, and gathered some of the cool spring-fed water, then closed her eyes, and splashed it on her face. Still crouching, she opened her eyes and casually looked around, and that’s when it caught her eye. It was partially sticking out of the sand, at the edge of the creek bed, about ten feet away from where she was crouched. It looked like…no, it couldn’t be what she thought it was, was it? She got up from her crouched position, walked over to the object, and crouched down again. She squinted, blinked, and then gently rubbed the sand away from the object. She still wasn’t sure if she was seeing what she thought she was seeing, but by all appearances, it looked to be a human skull.

********

“Is it true?” Dr. Christen Press asked with excitement in her voice. “About North Carolina?”

Director Abby Wambach looked up from her morning coffee and the paper she was reading. “Christen, come in, have a seat”, she said and motioned with her hand. Abby was the director of the Stanford Archaeological Center, a privately funded offshoot of Stanford University. Christen was the center’s resident archaeologist that specialized in North American prehistory.

Christen walked into Abby’s office and sat down, legs bouncing in excitement. “So…?”

Abby put down the paper, then looked at Christen and smiled. “It’s true. A park ranger found it at the edge of a creek bed in a remote part of Nantahala National Forest, in North Carolina.”

“A park ranger, huh? Wow. So, like, how did the park ranger find it? How did they know it was prehistoric? How did we even get the call?” Christen fired off.

“Christen, slow down”, Abby laughed. “The ranger was mapping a new area of the park and found the skull near a creek bed, so she reported it to the local sheriff’s department. One of the sheriff’s deputies who responded to the call had studied archaeology at UNC. He noticed right away that there was something different about the skull, that it didn’t exactly look like a modern human’s, so he took a photo and sent it to a friend who is an archaeologist grad student at the university, and this friend verified that the skull is in fact not from a modern human. So the grad student told his professor, who told the department chair at the university, so the university called DAPO, and DAPO called me, since we have the contract on archaeology for national parks in the States.”

“DAPO…the check writers”, Christen said and frowned. DAPO, short for the Department of Anthropology and Prehistory Organization, was a part-government/part-private institution that funded the museum.

“Hey – everyone has a backer”, Abby said.

“I just don’t see why the university can’t be our backer.”

“Christen – we’ve talked about this before”, Abby said in her director-business-esque voice. “The university has money, but it only goes so far.” When Christen didn’t respond, Abby continued, “The university’s funding allows people to make a living teaching archaeology, and even helps fund some research, but it’s DAPO that floats the bill for this center and allows you to play fossil hunter. If it weren’t for them, you’d be stuck teaching Archaeology 101 to a bunch of half-interested college freshman, instead of traveling around the country like Indiana Fucking Jones and uncovering cool ancient shit.”

“Yes, okay, I get it, Director”, Christen said. “And I’m thankful that they fund me to travel and do what I love, which is, yes, playing fossil hunter and uncovering cool ancient shit, but still…when it comes down to it, I know what they care about is money, and I- well, we, you and me, and the center, care about science.” Abby smiled in confirmation, and then Christen said, “Okay, sorry for the rant, so anyway, DAPO called you, and…”

“Well, the skull isn’t the only thing found”, Abby continued, then her lips curved up into a small smile. “The sheriff’s deputy and his friend from UNC went back to the creek with the ranger, and they found – get this – an entire skeleton.”

“What!?” Christen exclaimed, practically jumping out of her seat.

“That’s right. There is an entire skeleton, possibly from a prehistoric human, sitting next to that creek bed.”

“Oh my god. Has anyone examined it yet?” Christen asked, her pulse starting to quicken in excitement.

“No. No one’s touched it yet.”

“Wow”, Christen said. “I can’t believe that the ranger and the cops there haven’t destroyed the fossil bed yet.”

“I know, right? It’s a stroke of luck for us, actually. To his credit, the friend of the sheriff’s deputy astutely realized that this might be a finding of historical significance, so he told the sheriff to seal off the area and leave it undisturbed until the find could be further examined. And that’s where we come in.” Abby paused and then said, “They’re waiting for you, Christen.” Christen stared at Abby, who smiled and continued. “You get to be the one who examines the skeleton.”

“Oh my god…” Christen said again with a gasp.

“That’s right. This could possibly be the oldest hominid ever found in North America”, Abby said with a smile. “Imagine the significance of the find.”

“This could be…monumental”, Christen said.

“Yes, it could be.” 

“Oh my god…” Christen said once again.

Abby smiled for a moment and then got down to business. “Now, you need to leave for North Carolina right away. A car is waiting outside to take you to San Jose airport. You’ll be on DAPO’s private jet. That’s right – their private jet. Plush leather seats, gourmet breakfast, mimosas…how do you like DAPO now?” Abby jabbed, and Christen rolled her eyes playfully. “There will be a rental car for you when you arrive at Asheville Regional Airport. You’ll drive to the park, about two hours, and then check in at the central ranger station there. They can direct you to the find.” Christen nodded, and Abby looked at her watch and said, “It’s nine now, so with the time change you won’t get there until mid afternoon local time. Even though the sun doesn’t go down until like 8 or so, that won’t leave you much time to look around today, so you’ll be staying the night. Nearest town to the central ranger station is Tehacha.”

“Tehacha…”, Christen said.

“Smallest town in North Carolina, from what I hear. Pretty much in the middle of nowhere. Started as an old mining town way back when. It’s kind of a historical town, one of the last frontier towns in America. And from what I understand, the residents want to keep it that way. They’re not big on outside influences or big corporate America coming in. No chain stores, etc. Anyway, there probably won’t be much there, but you should be able to find a diner for meals, a motel to crash in, and a general store for whatever you need for a day or two. Just let me know tomorrow how things are looking after you’ve had a chance to look at the site, and we can send whatever you need – clothes, supplies, excavation team, whatever.” Abby looked at Christen and then said, “Any questions?”

“Think I’m good”, Christen said, anxious to leave, then got up, thinking about the opportunity, the opportunity of a lifetime. 

“This is big, Christen. This is the kind of thing we’ve been dreaming about, ever since we started this place”, Abby said, spreading her arms to indicate she was talking about the center.

“Well, you started it. I’m just lucky you picked me to work here”, Christen said with a smile.

“Well, you helped me put this place together, and the center wouldn’t be what it is today without you. So it’s we, Christen”, Abby smiled back.

Christen smiled back, thinking about their close partnership, five years strong, then paused for a moment, thought some more, and said, “Abby, do you really think…”

“I do”, Abby said, knowing what Christen was going to ask.

“Nobel prize…?” Christen said with a suggestive smile, raising her eyebrows and letting it hang.

“If this is what I think it is”, Abby said, smiling back. “You could possibly be the one to re-write North American prehistory, Christen.” Christen smiled even wider, then turned to leave and was almost out the door when Abby said, “Oh yeah – almost forgot – when you arrive at the central ranger station, ask for a…” she paused, then looked down at a notepad on her desk, “…Tobin Heath. She’s the park ranger who found the skull. She can take you to the site.”

“Tobin…” Christen said, repeating the name, then turned back around. “That’s a ‘she’?” 

“That’s what I’ve been told. Why?”

“Oh, nothing. I don’t know…Tobin…”, Christen said the name again, thinking about what an unusual name it was. “Just…sounds like a guy’s name, I guess.”

“Huh…maybe it does”, Abby said absently. “I don’t know any Tobins. Anyway, you should get moving.”

“Okay, I’m moving. Thanks Abby”, Christen said. She smiled and said, “I’ll keep you posted”, then turned and practically skipped out of the office, thinking about a Nobel prize for what might possibly be the oldest hominid in North America, what kind of food this town Tehacha would have (hopefully there would be at least one place that serves Chinese food, her favorite), and what a female park ranger who had name that sounded like a guy’s might look like.


	2. Chapter 2

Christen walked into the central ranger station at Nantahela National Forest. She looked around for a moment and then spotted what looked like an information counter.

“Can I help you?” a young woman wearing a park ranger uniform asked.

Tobin, perhaps? Christen thought. She decided to not be presumptuous. “I’m Dr. Christen Press, from the Stanford Archaeological Center. I’m here to examine the skeleton that was found-”

“Oh right!” the ranger interrupted Christen, her eyes lighting up, then turned back towards an office. “Tobes? That archaeology woman is here to see you”, she called out, then looked back at Christen. “I heard about it. It’s like a Neanderthal skeleton, right?” the ranger asked.

“Well, we don’t know what it is yet”, Christen said, smiling politely. “That’s what I came to find out.”

“Is it like Bigfoot?”

“Excuse me?” Christen said.

“Bigfoot. You know, like the big, hairy guy”, the ranger said, excitedly.

Christen paused, unsure of how to respond, or if this woman was putting her on. “Uh, well, we’re not sure-”

“Or”, the ranger looked around for a moment and then leaned in. “Do you think it’s maybe like a murder skeleton?” she asked quietly.

“A what?” Christen asked, confused.

“I mean, like maybe a skeleton from a murder?” The woman’s voice started to get louder in excitement.

Christen chuckled, amused, then bowed her head. “Uh, we don’t know what it is yet, but hopefully we’ll find ou-”

“Because that would be sooooo cool! I mean, not like murder’s cool or anything, but we need some excitement around here”, the woman said. A few of the visitors in the station looked over. “A murder-”

“Al, please, stop”, a voice chided lightly. Christen looked up and found herself staring at an attractive sun-kissed brunette who looked to be about her age. She had long hair and brown eyes, and her ranger uniform fitted nicely over her athletic curves. She flashed an apologetic look at Christen. “Sorry, Al-Alex here, her imagination sometimes runs wild.”

“Hey, it’s boring here. We need some excitement”, Alex whined but with a smile on her face.

“No, it’s not boring, it’s peaceful and quiet, just the way we like it”, the sun-kissed brunette said. She nodded at Alex to punctuate her point, and then looked back at Christen. “You must be Dr. Press. I’m Tobin Heath, senior park ranger”, she said. She flashed Christen a gorgeous smile and offered her hand, and Christen shook it. “This is Alex Morgan, junior ranger”, Tobin said.

“Nice to meet you both”, Christen said, then looked at Tobin. “So, you’re the one who found the skull?”

“I am. I was mapping a new section of the park, and I stopped to refill my canteen in a creek bed, and that’s when I saw it.”

“And the rest of the skeleton?”

“The sheriff’s team found it when they examined the scene”, Tobin said.

“See? Sheriff…crime scene…”, Alex said, raising her eyebrows, and Christen smiled, amused.

“Thank you, Sherlock Holmes”, Tobin said, teasing Alex, then looked at her watch and then at Christen. “Well, if you want to take a look at the site today we should leave now. Sun will be setting in a few hours. We won’t have much time there, but you can at least get the lay of the land.”

“I’d love to, thanks”, Christen said.

“Great! Follow me”, Tobin said with a smile. She swiped a backpack off of the counter. “Never leave home without it”, she said, holding it up, then headed for the front door. Christen waved goodbye to Alex and then turned around and followed Tobin out of the station.

“This your car?” Tobin asked, looking at the non-descript sedan in the parking lot.

“Uh, yeah. How’d you guess?” Christen asked.

“Because it’s shiny and well-kept. Looks like a rental car.”

“Now who’s the Sherlock Holmes?” Christen jested, and Tobin smiled. She has an amazing smile, Christen thought, momentarily getting lost, then re-oriented herself. You’re here on business, Christen, she thought to herself. Stay on track.

“You can leave the car here until we get back”, Tobin said. “Are you ready?”

“Uh, think I’m good”, Christen said, looking herself over. She was already dressed for hiking, and she shouldn’t need her tools. There wouldn’t be time to get into any kind of excavation.

“Alrighty then, trail’s this way”, Tobin said with a smile, then turned around and headed off, with Christen on her heels.

“How far is the site?” Christen asked.

“About two hours”, Tobin said. “I know, that doesn’t give you much time to look around today.” She stopped walking and then said, “We can turn around now, if you don’t think it’d be worth the trek.”

“No, no – it’s fine, totally worth it”, Christen said, smiling at Tobin, who smiled back and then started up again. In all actuality, it probably wasn’t really worth it to spend a couple hours hiking there and a couple hours hiking back when they would probably only have an hour at most to look around, but she was so excited about the discovery that her practical side gave way. Plus, she could use the exercise, having been on a plane for a lot of the day. And, if she was being honest with herself, she was enjoying hiking alongside this attractive park ranger who had an amazing smile. Stay on track, Christen thought to herself. Eye on the prize. Hopefully Nobel prize. They hiked for awhile in silence, Christen looking around and up at the sunlight glinting through the trees that lined the trail. An hour later, Tobin stopped, pulled out her canteen, and unscrewed the top. “Dr. Press?” she said, offering Christen the first drink.

“Thanks”, Christen said, noting that Tobin had offered her the first drink. She took a few gulps and then handed then handing the canteen back to Tobin. “And please – call me Christen.”

“Okay, Christen”, Tobin said with a smile. She took a drink and then said, “Well, Christen, I must say, you’re doing a pretty good job keeping up. You must be in good shape.” She gave Christen the once-over and then said, “Well, at least you look like you are.”

“Thanks”, Christen said. “I guess I am. I mean, being an archaeologist isn’t an office job. I’m out in the field pretty often. But I’m still not in shape like I was in college, when I played soccer.”

“You played soccer?” Tobin’s eyes brightened. “I played soccer too!”

“Oh, cool! Where did you play?”

“UNC. Well, I played on the intramural team. I tried out for the regular team but I wasn’t good enough”, Tobin said. She sighed and then said, “I wanted to play professionally, but, well…that wasn’t going to happen, so after college I just started working here, as a ranger.”

“I wanted to play professionally too, but I wasn’t good enough either. But, I discovered archaeology, and I love it.”

“That’s cool. I don’t know much about archaeology. Is it like Indiana Jones? Do you get to go treasure hunting and outrun bad guys?”

Christen laughed. “No, not exactly. I mean, we go fossil hunting and what not, but no, there’s no ancient treasure, which would be cool, and no bad guys chasing us, which maybe would or would not be cool. But, I still love it.”

“Well, it’s good to like your job. I mean, I bet being a pro soccer player would have been awesome, but I like being a ranger too. I love the outdoors, and I like the quiet”, Tobin said, looking up and around.

“Well, I guess everything works out in the end”, Christen said, smiling.

“Yeah, I guess it does”, Tobin said, smiling back. The two women gazed at each other for a moment and then Tobin said, “Well, shall we keep going?”

“Uh, yeah, totally’, Christen said.

They walked in silence for another hour, and then they came upon a clearing that opened onto a precipice. “Wow”, Christen said, as she took in the view, the sky going from dark blue overhead to bright orange on the horizon, the evening summer sun glinting off the tree tops, bathing the lush green forest in a golden halo. Being an archaeologist, Christen had seen many impressive views in her travels, but this had to rank right up there with the best of them.

“Nice, huh?” Tobin said, enjoying the view. It was one of her favorite parts of her job, beautiful views.

“It’s amazing”, Christen breathed out. For a moment she almost forgot why she was there, but then Tobin’s voice brought her back.

“There’s a trail down to the creek right over here”, Tobin said.

Christen looked over at Tobin, her sun-kissed skin glowing in the magic hour light. She’s beautiful, Christen thought, having a moment. Then the thought of what she had come so far to see being so very close by snapped her back to reality. “Right, uh…creek”, Christen said, absently. She followed Tobin down the trail for a few minutes until they hit the creek bed.

“Well, here it is”, Tobin said, walking over to the spot and pointing to the ground, where a tarp had been laid down. Christen could feel her pulse quicken as she walked over. Tobin smiled at the look of anticipation on Christen’s face, and then pulled off the tarp.

“Oh my god”, Christen breathed out. There it was. A human skeleton, but not a modern human skeleton, and right then and there, Christen knew that in front of her was quite possibly the oldest hominid ever found in North America.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For some reason AO3 marked this story as finished after the last chapter I posted. Sorry for the false alarm. There’s definitely more to this story (although it won’t be super long).

“Sorry for taking so long”, Christen said, as she laid the tarp back over the skeleton. What she had thought was going to be maybe thirty minutes of looking turned into two hours. Tobin had politely reminded Christen a few times that they should get going, but Christen had been transfixed, and now the sun had just gone down and dusk was settling onto the forest.

“It’s okay. You were excited”, Tobin said. It was cute, she thought, the way the gorgeous archaeologist’s eyes had lit up when Tobin had pulled back the tarp, and for the last two hours Christen’s excitement had been palpable, poking around the skeleton, giddy as a child on Christmas. She hadn’t brought her tools, which she had bemoaned, but she had been carrying a small brush and hand pick with her and had used both to meticulously dust and clean the skeleton, gushing every few minutes about what an exciting find it was. “It was…cute”, Tobin said with a small smile.

Christen blushed a bit and smiled back. “Well, thanks for being, you know, cool about staying so long. I mean, it’s pretty much dark now.”

“It’s okay. I got a flashlight”, Tobin said, fishing it out of her backpack. “Obviously it’s better to hike during the day, but we’ll be okay”, she said. She thumbed the switch. “Shit.”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s not turning on.” Tobin tried again. “Think I have some extra batteries”, she said. She dug some out of the backpack and put them in the flashlight. “Still doesn’t work.”

“Oh”, Christen said. “So, now what?”

Tobin looked around and up. The last of the daylight would be gone in a few minutes. “Well, it’s too dark to hike back without a light now. It’s probably best to stay out here and head back tomorrow morning.”

“Really? Just stay out here?” Christen said, caught off-guard by Tobin’s nonchalance.

“Sure.”

“Like…in the woods?”

“Yeah. We’ll be fine for the night. It's been done before.” Tobin looked at Christen and smiled easily. “I hope you’re okay staying out here.”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. I mean, we kind of don’t have a choice, right. And it’s my fault we’re stuck out here, so I guess I’ll have to be fine.” Christen smiled an apologetic smile. “I just feel bad, Tobin. We should’ve left when you said.”

“Don’t worry about it”, Tobin said positively. “Let’s get back up to the precipice. We can spend the night in the clearing up there.” Tobin turned around and started to lead them up the trail.

“Shit”, Christen said, as she lost her footing on a loose rock.

“Here, I gotcha”, Tobin said. She grabbed Christen’s arm and steadied her.

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome”, Tobin said. She stared at Christen in the almost-darkness, and then slid her hand down to Christen’s. “It’s hard to see the trail when it’s this dark. I’ll guide you”, she said, keeping a hold of Christen’s hand. Christen grimaced a bit at the thought of having kept them out here so long that it was now dark and she had to be led up the trail, but Tobin was right: it was hard to see, and Tobin was a better hiker than Christen, and as they walked, Christen found herself marveling at the feel of Tobin’s hand in her own. They reached the top of the precipice and found a grassy patch.

“We can stay here”, Tobin said, opening up the backpack. She took out the canteen. “Here, you sit down and have some water. I’m going to grab some wood for a fire.”

“Do you need help?”

“No, I got it. You’re my guest”, Tobin said, and smiled.

“You mean I’m the reason why we’re stuck out here tonight”, Christen said ruefully.

“No, I mean you’re my guest, so I’ll take care of everything tonight”, Tobin said, flashing her brilliant smile in the near-darkness.

“Thanks”, Christen said, registering Tobin's smile and smiling back. She sat down, took out her hair tie and fluffed her hair for a moment, then drank from the canteen. Tobin stared at her for a moment and then went off to find wood, returning a few minutes later. “Here”, Christen said, handing Tobin the canteen, as Tobin put the wood on the ground.

“Thanks”, Tobin said. She took a drink and then started expertly arranging the wood, putting the smaller pieces on the bottom as kindling and the larger pieces on top.

“Tobin, I’m really sorry again, I should hav-”

“Don’t worry about it”, Tobin said again, then laughed lightly as she fished out some matches. “At least no worries on my end. Like I said, it’s not the first time I’ve spent the night in the forest.”

“I suppose not”, Christen chuckled. “Being a park ranger and all.”

“I’m just hoping you’re okay spending the night here”, Tobin said.

“I’ll be fine, thanks. I mean, I’m an archaeologist, so I’ve spent nights in the field.”

Tobin smiled, then lit a match and put it to the kindling. She waited a moment for the kindling to catch and then blew on it as it started to smolder, spreading fire to the larger sticks.

“Wow”, Christen said, impressed with Tobin’s fire-starting abilities. “Skills.”

“Comes with being a ranger I guess”, Tobin said. She smiled at the compliment and then went back into her backpack. “And in here somewhere is…” Tobin said, talking to herself as she rummaged around, “Dinner!” Tobin said, producing a small foil pouch.

“What’s that?” Christen asked.

“It’s an MRE. Meal ready to eat. The military invented them for soldiers in the field. We keep them in our backpacks for times like this. It’s a hot meal that cooks itself. This one is…” Tobin said as she sat down next to Christen, trying to read the label in the firelight, “Chicken Chow Mein.”

Christen laughed. “I was just thinking about Chinese food earlier today. It’s my favorite. I was wondering if you'd have any in Tehacha, and, well...you do!” Coincidence, she thought to herself? Out loud she said, “Anyway, that’s fancy for a camping meal.”

“Actually it’s the best Chinese food within a hundred miles”, Tobin quipped, and Christen laughed. “You just do this”, Tobin said, taking the foil pouch and pushing on it until she heard and felt a small snap. “There’s a flameless heater built into the pouch. When you snap it, it starts the heater, which heats the food in the pouch. Now we just have to wait a minute, and presto – dinner!” Christen laughed again, and Tobin put the pouch on the ground next to her. “You’re stuck out here with me tonight, so I figured the least I can do is treat you to a gourmet meal of your favorite food”, she joked.

Christen laughed and then said, “Actually, I’m the one who stuck us out here for the night, so you’d be totally within your right to send me to bed without supper if you want, but thank you. I’ll treat for the next one. Hopefully somewhere not stuck outside”, she said and smiled.

“Deal”, Tobin said and winked, then turned her attention back to the meal. She waited for another moment and then shook the pouch. “Okay, think we’re ready”, she said. She dug into the backpack and found a small metal dish. She poured the contents of the pouch into the dish and then fished a spork out of the backpack. “Here you go”, she said to Christen, handing the meal to Christen. “Gonna have to share. Only got one dish and one spork. We usually only pack for one, since we usually go out alone”, she said by way of explanation.

“Thank you”, Christen said, noting that Tobin offered her first dibs on the food. “Wait – is this a spork?” she asked, amused.

“Yep. Handiest utensil ever invented”, Tobin said with a smile.

“I haven’t seen one since like 4th grade lunch room”, Christen said with a laugh, then gazed at Tobin in the firelight and took a bite. “Hey, this is actually pretty good”, she said with a smile.

“Not bad huh?” Tobin said, smiling. “Like I said, best Chinese food within a hundred miles. Actually, it may be the only Chinese food within a hundred miles.”

Christen ate a few more bites and then handed the dish to Tobin. “That’s a handy backpack you got there. You got a king size bed in there too?” she joked.

Tobin laughed. “No, unfortunately not, but this thing does come in handy for sure. Especially in times like this.” Christen smiled and Tobin ate a few bites and then handed the dish back to Christen. “Here, you eat the rest. “I’m going to go get us some dessert.”

“Wait, what?” Christen said.

Tobin smiled, then grabbed the cool end of one of the burning branches in the fire to use as a torch, stood up and walked off. She came back two minutes later, put the torch back in the fire, and sat down right next to Christen. “I noticed some berries when we came in earlier, some blackberries and mulberries, and some nuts. Are you done with dinner?” she asked, and Christen nodded and handed her the dish. Tobin reached into her backpack, pulled out a small piece of cloth and wiped the dish, then pulled out a tube with some kind of white-ish viscous-looking liquid. “This is kind of like MRE yogurt, doesn’t need refrigeration”, she said with a smile, as she squeezed some into the dish. “I know, looks kind of gross, especially when being squeezed out of a tube, but it tastes good.” She put the empty tube back in the backpack, took the berries she had found and placed them on top of the yogurt, then took the nuts, pulled out a pocket knife, sliced them up fine in her palm, and then sprinkled them on top. She wiped the spork with the cloth, stuck it in the bowl, and handed it to Christen. “Here – dessert”, she said with a smile.

“Wow”, Christen said, again and smiled and stared at Tobin, staring at the fire-cast shadows dancing on the sun-kissed brunette’s face. I’m not quite sure what’s happening here, she thought - being catered to by this beautiful park ranger out in the middle of the woods - but I like it. “Thank you”, she said. She scooped up some yogurt and nuts on her fork, speared a couple berries, and then tasted it. “Mmmm”, Christen said, surprised at how good it tasted. “It kind of tastes like…”

“Yogurt parfait, right?” Tobin offered.

“Totally”, Christen said. She ate a bit more and then handed the dish to Tobin. “So, you played soccer in college, and then you came here to work?”

“Yep. I grew up around here, on a small farm. I used to come here all the time when I was younger. It was my favorite place”, Tobin said. “She looked around and then looked at Christen. “Still is my favorite place. I love the quiet, the beauty, the stars at night. It’s all so…peaceful. I hope that never changes.”

Christen smiled at Tobin and then looked around. “It’s lovely”, she said.

“So, archaeology, huh?” Tobin started.

“Yup, archaeology”, Christen said, smiling. “Discovered it in college and fell in love with it. I like being outdoors, and I love the exploring and discovery aspect of it. I studied some minerology too."

Tobin thought for a moment and then said, “So, this skeleton thing, is it a big discovery?” Tobin asked. “I mean, is it like…you know, going to make you famous…or whatever…?”

Christen laughed softly. “I don’t know. I mean, depending on what it ends up being, maybe. I guess we’ll find out, but no matter what it ends up being, it’s an exciting find.”

“Well that would be cool, I guess. I mean, I’ll be able to say that I met someone famous”, Tobin said, and Christen laughed again. “Do you want to be famous? I mean, is that like, an important part of being an archaeologist?”

“Not necessarily, but, I mean, it’d be great to win a Nobel Prize for something”, Christen said. She stared at Tobin and then said, “Plus, you’re the one who actually found it. I’m the one who needs to study it, but you’re the actual discoverer. So if I became famous then you’d become famous too.”

“Hmmmm…”

“What?”

“I was just thinking…I mean, I’m not sure if I would want to be famous”, Tobin said. “I like peace and quiet.”

“Well, then maybe it’s a good thing you didn’t end up a pro soccer player. Not much peace and quiet there as a professional athlete, I would imagine.”

“I suppose not”, Tobin pondered.

Christen looked at Tobin. “Well, who knows? Maybe this find will be nothing, and all we’ll have to show for it is some time in the woods together”, she said, smiling over her shoulder.

“Yeah”, Tobin laughed lightly. “Well, definitely will still have been worth it”, she said. She smiled back at Christen, and the two women gazed at each other for a moment, the fire crackling in front of them. Then Tobin looked up. “Well, at least it’s a nice night to be stuck outside.”

Christen looked up. “Whoa”, she said. There were stars everywhere.

“Yep, lots of stars out here”, Tobin said. “I love stars.”

“Me too.”

“There’s Orion”, Tobin said, pointing to a bright belt of stars. “And the Big Dipper”, she said, moving her hand a bit to the left.

“Cassiopeia”, Christen said, raising her arm next to Tobin’s and pointing. 

“You know your stars”, Tobin said. She looked at Christen and smiled.

“A little bit”, Christen said, smiling back.

“Ursa Major”, Tobin said, turning back to the stars.

“Ursa Minor”, Christen said.

“Vega”, Tobin said, pointing across Christen, leaning in a bit, her shoulder touching Christen’s and her hair brushing Christen’s face. Christen looked over and smiled a bit, and Tobin felt her heart flutter slightly.

“Scorpius.”

“Cygnus.”

“Okay, you got me”, Christen said, laughing slightly. “I think I’m at the end of my stars knowledge."

“Pretty good”, Tobin said and laughed lightly. “I mean, it wasn’t a competition or anything”, she shrugged, then rested her chin lightly on Christen’s shoulder and stared at her from the side. “It’s just cool that you know some constellations.”

“Well, it’s cool that you know even more”, Christen said, and then flashed a small sideways smile as she felt Tobin’s breath on her neck. “Anyway, I guess knowing the names isn’t really all that important.”

“No, it’s enjoying the beauty that’s important”, Tobin said, then closed her eyes. She breathed in Christen’s scent and sighed slightly. Christen continued to look at the sky, conscious of Tobin, who was now resting her head on Christen’s shoulder, their hands close to touching. They stayed like that in silence as the fire started to wind down, and then Tobin let out a big yawn. “Excuse me”, she said, covering her mouth and raising her head.

“Dozing off, sleepyhead?” Christen joked softly.

“I think so. You’re a comfy pillow”, Tobin said back. Christen smiled, and then Tobin said, “Well, I suppose we should get some sleep, so we can get going right at sunrise, since we have to go back to get your archaeology stuff and then come back out”, Tobin said.

“Yeah, I suppose so”, Christen said. “I wish I had a blanket.”

“Are you cold?”

“I just kind of like having something on top of me when I sleep. Even just like a light sheet or something”, Christen said. “But yeah, I’m a little chilly.” It was still a summer night, but with the sun down the temperature had dropped off a bit.

“Here”, Tobin said, reaching into her backpack and pulling out a large rain pancho. “It’s not exactly a blanket, but it should serve for tonight if you want to wrap yourself up in it.”

“Thanks”, Christen said. She bedded down and then looked at Tobin, who was lying back on the grass. “Wait - you don’t have one?”

“No, there’s only one. Like I said earlier, we usually only pack these backpacks for one person”, Tobin said, laying down a few feet away.

Christen stared at Tobin in the light of the dying fire and then said, “Here, Tobin – we can share.”

“No, it’s okay, thanks though, I’ll be fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. It’s pretty warm still, and I’m tired, so I doubt I’ll have trouble falling asleep.”

“Okay”, Christen said, frowning a bit in the near-dark, partly hoping that Tobin would want to share the poncho with her. She closed her eyes and tried to fall asleep, but peeped one eye open and saw Tobin take out her ponytail and fluff her hair, then lie down on the grass a few feet away, facing the other direction. She stared at her for a moment, then sat up, scooted her way over to Tobin and laid down next to her. “Hey”, she whispered.

“Christen?” Tobin whispered, eyes closed.

“We’re going to share”, Christen said, pulling the large poncho over both of them.

“No really, it’s okay-”

“Shhhh…here…” Christen said. She smoothed the poncho out and then turned her body so she was spooned in behind Tobin, her face nuzzled into the back of Tobin’s neck. “Is this okay?” Christen whispered.

“Mmmhmm…yeah”, Tobin whispered back. She opened her eyes for a moment and smiled to herself. “Thank you.”

“No…thank you…for dinner…dessert…star gazing…everything...”

“You’re welcome”, Tobin muttered sleepily, closing her eyes again. “Goodnight, Christen.”

“Goodnight, Tobin.”

Tobin was silent for a moment and then whispered, “I’m glad you’re here.”

Christen smiled into the back of Tobin’s head. She inhaled the scent of Tobin’s hair and then whispered, “I’m glad I’m here, too.” It was true – she liked sleeping with something on top of her, but, as she drifted off to sleep, she found herself thinking about how nice it was to have something – in particular this beautiful park ranger - beside her as well.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay real life might get in the way in the next few days but here's another chapter. Thanks for reading!

“Christen”, Tobin whispered.

Christen’s eyes fluttered open but then quickly shut as she squinted against the morning light. She moaned and Tobin laughed quietly, and Christen paused, reset, and then slowly opened her eyes again and sat up.

“Good morning, sleepyhead”, Tobin said.

“Good morning”, Christen returned, groggy.

“Here”, Tobin said, handing Christen a cup of coffee in a metal cup. Tobin had restarted the fire and had heated up some water for instant coffee. “It’s not Starbucks, and no cream or sugar, but it should get us back to the center.”

“Thank you”, Christen said. She closed her eyes and took a slow sip. “Mmmmm…Starbucks Schmarbucks. This is hitting the spot. That thing”, she said, pointing at the backpack, “is amazing. I know what I want for Christmas.”

“I know, right? Everything you need, all in one nifty little backpack” Tobin laughed, then reached out her hand. “Sorry to swipe your coffee, but only one cup, gotta share.”

“Oh, right”, Christen said. She took one more sip and then handed the cup to Tobin.

Tobin took a long sip. “How’d you sleep?” she asked, then took another sip and handed the cup back to Christen.

“Not bad actually. The poncho as a blanket really helped. How about you?”

“Pretty good. Although someone stole all the covers in the middle of the night”, Tobin said, then glared playfully at Christen.

“Oh, yeah, sorry…I’ve been known to do that”, Christen admitted sheepishly. Her college girlfriend Julie always used to chide her for that.

“It’s okay. I was fine without. But it was nice starting off with covers. And it was even nicer having you next to me”, Tobin said.

Christen blushed a bit but laughed lightly and gazed at Tobin. It had been quite the 24 hours, she thought. Certainly when she woke up yesterday she wouldn’t have thought that, 24 hours later, she would be 3000 miles away from home, waking up next to some beautiful park ranger who she’d just met half a day before. “I guess it wasn’t so bad, being stuck out here last night. All in all it was a pretty good night. I mean, good food, great company…you’re a wonderful hostess”, Christen said with a smile. Tobin smiled back, and Christen took another sip of coffee and then said, “So, what time is it?”

Tobin looked at her watch. “Almost six. We should get moving.” She reached out and pulled Christen to her feet. “Here, you’ve got like stuff on you…” Tobin trailed off as she brushed some grass and twigs off of Christen. Christen giggled a bit and then took a stray lock of Tobin’s hair and pushed it behind her ears. The two women stared at each other for a moment and then Tobin cleared her throat and said, “Okay, um…”, and then grabbed the backpack. “Ready?”

“Uh, yeah, ready”, Christen said, then followed Tobin. They hiked silently, each lost in their own thoughts, Tobin thinking about her discovery that somehow led to spending the night in the woods with a gorgeous archaeologist, and Christen thinking about a find of possibly incredible importance, and the beautiful park ranger who took care of her in the woods last night.

Two hours later they arrived at the central ranger station.

“So…do you need to take a shower or anything?” Tobin asked. “I know you didn’t get a chance to check into a hotel or anything yesterday, but you can shower at my place. I live in Tehacha. Or there’s a shower here at the station.”

“Hmmm…shower is tempting, but I should probably get moving”, Christen said. “I just need to get some things”, she said as she unlocked her car.

“Okay, well, I’m going to duck into the station, refill the backpack, and then I’ll be ready to take you back out in a few minutes.”

“Okay”, Christen said, gazing at Tobin.

“Okay”, Tobin said, gazing back, then reached out. She touched her fingers to Christen’s arm, then trailed them down to Christen’s palm, then gave Christen’s hand a light squeeze. “Okay!” she said again, then smiled and went into the station. Christen smiled, her eyes following Tobin, and then she went into her car, found her phone, and dialed.

“Hey Abby, it’s Christen.”

“Christen, how’s everything going out there?” Abby answered in her crisp business voice.

“I’m going to need some stuff”, Christen said. “I think this is going to be big.”

“Okay, I’ll send you the works”, Abby said, meaning clothes, toiletries, tools, and an excavation team. “We’ll send DAPO’s jet today.”

“Thanks Abby”, Christen said, then thought. “Hey Abby, one more thing – can you make sure whoever sends my clothes packs something nice?”

********

Christen spent the next few days at the site. Abby had sent Christen a suitcase, tools, and a team of archaeologists, who had checked themselves and Christen into a motel in Tehacha. News had spread in the community about some kind of important archaeological excavation happening. Christen had been interviewed by the local news, and had been quoted as saying, “This is a very significant find, and it’s important that we take advantage of the opportunity to learn as much as we can…” Every morning Tobin took Christen out to the site and then stayed as long as she could, or came back for her in the evening. By the second evening Christen knew the way and could lead her team back, but Tobin still tried to come out when she could and walk with her.

“So, how’d the dig go today?” Tobin asked. “Dig, right? That’s the correct term?”

They were at the diner in Tehacha. Tobin hadn’t been able to accompany Christen to the site that day, so they were meeting up for dinner. It was their first meal together not in the forest.

Christen smiled. “Yes, well, technically ‘excavation’ is correct, but dig is how we colloquially call it, and it’s going well, thanks for asking. We don’t know how old it is yet, but we sent out some samples for radiocarbon dating.”

“Radio what? Radiohead?” Tobin quipped.

“No, silly”, Christen said and smiled. “Radiocarbon dating. It’s a way of determining the age of fossils.”

“Dating…sounds hot”, Tobin teased.

“You’re such a goofball”, Christen said, rolling her eyes playfully. “Anyway, we use the properties of radiocarbon, which is a radioactive isotope of carbon, an element found in organic material. By measuring how fast the radiocarbon decays over a short period of time, we can figure out hold old something is.”

“I have no idea what you just said, but again – sounds kind of hot”, Tobin said and smiled.

“Well, I’ve never thought of radiocarbon dating as being hot, but okay.”

“No, I mean your passion. You were like really excited about it, when you were explaining it. That’s’ hot.”

“Well, thanks”, Christen blushes. “And you”, Christen paused, measuring her next words, “well, I was going to say ‘hot’, but I thought maybe that would come across too strong, so I’ll say that, well, you clean up nice.” Tobin was wearing a light blue dress and high beige cowboy boots.

Tobin laughed. “Thanks. Hot would have been fine. And you clean up nice too”, Tobin returned. Christen was wearing a dark red camisole, a black skirt, and black suede heels.

“Thanks. Figured I’d try to clean up a bit for our first date - I mean, dinner in an actual restaurant.”

“The only restaurant in Tehacha, to be exact”, Tobin cracked. “And ‘date’…I like the sound of that.” She smiled at Christen, who smiled back. "So, is your dig a big deal? I feel like people around here are talking about it.”

“It is a big deal”, Christen said. “And I don’t mean to sound like I’m bragging, but it really is a big discovery.”

“Are you going to be here for a while?”

“I’m not sure”, Christen said, then lowered her eyes playfully. “Trying to get rid of me?”

“Now who’s being a silly goofball?” Tobin replied playfully back. “No, I was just wondering. Anyway, it sounds like a big deal…”

“Well, I was interviewed by the local news the other day.”

“Because it’s a historic find, right?”

“It is, possibly. I mean, it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity, and we need to take advantage of that. Imagine what we can learn. I mean, we could possibly be rewriting history here.”

“Wow.” Tobin said, then went silent.

“What is it Tobin?”

“Well, I was just thinking…it’d be…monumental to rewrite history, but we have history already, right here…this town”, she said, spreading her arms and looking around.

Christen stared at Tobin for a moment, as something hit her. “You sound worried, Tobin. What is it?”

“I don’t know, it’s just that…well., people are talking…”

“Talking about what?”

“I guess people here are wondering if your discovery is going to change the town. “Like if it’s going to bring things here…you know, like more people, more businesses…” Tobin trailed off.

“I don’t think so”, Christen said. “I mean, we’re donating some money to the park itself, and some funds to the ranger station, so yes that is money being brought here, but once we’re done, we’ll be gone, so nothing should really change. She looked at Tobin and then said, “Why do you ask?”

“Oh nothing”, Tobin said, then, “I guess…I mean, this is a small town, one of the last frontier towns in America, and, well, I guess we just kind of want to keep it that way.”

“I get that”, Christen said. “But maybe a bit of expansion wouldn’t be a bad thing. I mean, maybe you can get a Chinese restaurant here”, she said with a smile.

Tobin laughed. “Yeah, that would be nice, but it’s also nice just being…I don’t know, a historic town. Like I said, there’s not many left. I mean, we can find Chinese food elsewhere, but how many places can you find a historic town, that’s pretty much the same now as when it was founded, untouched by urban developing and stuff? I mean, once you start building, you never go back.” She looked at Christen and said, “My family settled here and worked as miners. We’ve been here for generations, and my family is really proud of that. Lot's of families here are like that. It's why I came back after going to UNC. I mean, I love nature, and I love the woods, but I could have gone somewhere else, moved to a big city, and still been near nature and woods. And I get the appeal of a bigger city, or even a town bigger than this. It’s nice to have options around, and stores that carry lots of stuff. It’s nice not to have to drive two hours to get Chinese food or whatever. But this town is great because none of that stuff is here. We have no chain restaurants. We have no big stores. This town is much like how it was way back when. And I think that’s what makes it special. It’s historic. There’s lots of Walmarts and big corporate headquarters and McDonalds all across the US. How many truly historic towns are there? I mean, maybe it’s just me, that I’m not a big city person, but I don’t want the whole world to look like New York.”

“Listen, Tobin – I can tell you’re kind of worried about whether or not our dig is going to change the town, but I don’t think that will happen. Plus, this discovery is important, and we should take advantage of the opportunity.”

“I understand that, but what if it does change the town? I mean, I guess, thinking about things…where do we draw the line between progress and discovery, and preserving traditions and history?”

“We could be rewriting history with this, Tobin”, Christen said again.

“And I get that, and that’s exciting… as long as we’re not erasing history in the process", Tobin said back.

The two women were silent for a moment, and then Christen said, “I understand, Tobin. And you’re right. There aren’t a lot of historic towns left, and I agree that once you start building, you don’t go back. And this place definitely has its charm”, she said, looking around, and then looked at Tobin. “One thing in particular.” She gazed at Tobin and smiled to lighten the mood, and Tobin smiled back. “Look, Tobin - archaeology isn’t about erasing history. It’s about studying it. We want to study history so we can make a better future. Anyway, like I said, I don’t think you’ll have to worry – I doubt anything will happen to this town on account of us being here. Again – once we’re done, we’ll pack up and leave, and that should be it.”

“Well, that’s kind of a bummer”, Tobin said, and gazed at Christen. “When I said I didn’t want the town to grow, I didn’t mean I wouldn’t take one more person in particular”, she said, then gave a shy smile. Christen smiled back, and the two women started at each other for a moment, then Tobin said, “So…um…Nobel Prize then maybe, huh?”

Christen laughed. “Maybe. That’s a long way off though, and totally a maybe.”

Tobin took a sip of her wine. “Is that important to you? To win a Nobel Prize?”

“It is”, Christen said. “I mean, it’s something I’ve dreamed about, making a big discovery, walking on that stage and receiving the award. I guess it would make me feel…I don’t know…validated, or something.”

“Well, then I hope you get one for this”, Tobin said sincerely.

“Thank you. Me too.”

“But, even if you don’t, well…I know this one-horse town doesn't have a lot, and it's kind of, well...rustic, but I hope your stay is worth it.”

Christen laughed. “So far I can’t complain. Beautiful forest. Charming 'rustic' little town", she said, then lowered her eyes at Tobin and smiled. "Cute rangers.”

Tobin smiled back. “Well, you’re not too bad yourself”, she said.

********

“Thank you for dinner. That was lovely”,” Tobin said, then looped her arm through Christen’s as they walked out of the diner.

Christen smiled. “My pleasure. And, I owed you one, for our fabulous gourmet Chinese and parfait meal in the woods.”

Tobin laughed lightly and leaned into Christen, and then slid her hand down from Christen’s elbow to her hand, and they walked hand in hand until they reached Christen’s motel a couple blocks away.

“Well, this is me”, Christen said, standing in front of the door to her room. “Do you live close to here?”

“Everything is close to here – this town isn’t that big”, Tobin joked.

“Right, of course”, Christen smiled. “One of the few small historic frontier towns in America.”

“That’s right, and don’t you forget it”, Tobin said lightly. “I live a few blocks away.”

“Are you coming to the site tomorrow?

Tobin sighed. “I can’t. I need to lead a tour group from UNC’s Environmental Studies program.”

“What? I thought you were assigned solely to me”, Christen said in mock offense and turned to face Tobin.

“Well, as much as I’d love to be your personal chaperone for the duration of your stay, I do have other things I need to do”, Tobin said, with a smile. Christen mock pouted, and then Tobin took Christen’s other hand. “Now, I’m not saying I’d rather do those things, though…”, she said.

Christen stared into Tobin’s eyes. Less than a foot and their lips would meet. “Um…d-d-do you want to come in?”

Tobin gazed into Christen’s eyes for a moment and then said, “Yes...No...Maybe…? I do, I think…but maybe not tonight.”

Christen laughed lightly. “That was all very…cryptic…”

Tobin stared at Christen and then dropped her gaze. “I’m sorry, that was-”

“It’s okay”, Christen said, a little disappointed. Doesn’t matter though, she thought to herself. Tobin is lovely, but you’re here for work, and then you’ll be gone, just like that. “I…um…” Christen started to say, but then Tobin looked back up, leaned in and planted a soft kiss on Christen’s mouth. Christen stayed there, feeling Tobin’s soft lips press against her own, and then returned the kiss.

“Have a good dig tomorrow”, Tobin whispered close. Christen just stood there, speechless, processing the kiss, and then Tobin gently squeezed her hands.

“Bye, you”, Tobin whispered. She gave Christen one last quick kiss, and then let go, turned around and started walking away.

“Bye”, Christen whispered back. Her eyes lingered on Tobin as she walked down the street, and then she sighed, smiled slightly to herself, and headed into her motel room.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm going to try something in this chapter that I don't usually do - sex scene. I usually build up to those and then let the imagination take over, but a few folks have PM'd me and asked me why I don't write sex scenes, and I'm always up for trying new things and improving my writing, so I thought I'd give it a shot. Also, one thing I try to do when I write is to think about how my writing would translate to screen (I guess I write almost more as if I was writing for a movie rather than a book), and I was trying to think of what the movie tagline would be, and I came up with something like:
> 
> "A thoughtful, sexy, romantic drama that appeals to both the heart and head"
> 
> Or something like that, so maybe a sex scene or two will work for this story. Anyway, please feel free to give me candid feedback (I always appreciate it - like I said, I'm always trying to improve my writing).  
> Thanks again for reading!

“Neil, let’s cover up the find”, Christen said. She was standing in the open-air work tent at the excavation site. It was just past four the next afternoon, and she was directing the team to start the daily wrap-up process.

“Copy that, Doctor”, Neil said. 

“Allie – pack up the sorted fragments, we’ll take them back to the station and send them back to the center for processing.”

“Yes, Doctor”, Allie said.

“Rose – let’s get the lateral fibia prepped for radiocarbon dating. And have the rest of the team start cleaning up for the day.”

“On it, Doctor”, Rose said cheerfully. Christen stared at her and smiled. Rose was always upbeat and in a good mood.

“Thanks everyone”, Christen called out and started to casually look at one of the skull fragments.

“So…did you figure out how she is? Or is it a he?” came a familiar voice.

Christen turned around, and there was Tobin, standing a few feet away. “Heyyyyy”, she breathed out.

“Hi”, Tobin said, with a smile and a small wave.

“What are you…I thought you were leading that university tour group all day.”

“I got off early”, Tobin said. “Alex took the afternoon part of the tour, so I could come out here. But I can go if you’re busy”, she teased.

“Nooooo…”, Christen said sweetly, and took a step towards Tobin.

Tobin glanced around quickly and saw all of Christen’s team occupied, then she looked back at Christen and planted a soft kiss on her lips. “Hi”, she breathed.

“Hi”, Christen said back.

“You’re sweaty”, Tobin said, smiling.

“So are you, little Miss Hot Ranger”, Christen said back.

Tobin giggled and looked around quickly again, and then looped her thumbs through the belt loops on Christen’s jeans. “Wanna cool off?” she asked.

“What do you mean? How?” Christen asked, confused.

Tobin leaned in a bit. “Any chance you can get away right now?”

Christen looked around. They were wrapping up for the day. Nothing her team couldn’t handle without her. She would tell Rose she was leaving for the day. She looked back at Tobin and lightly ran her finger down the button down seam of Tobin’s tan ranger uniform shirt. “Where to?”

********

Christen and Tobin hiked for about an hour, loosely following the creek, and then came upon a small clearing where the creek widened to about 20 feet.

“This is my favorite place to swim”, Tobin said.

“Looks nice”, Christen said.

Tobin glanced at Christen and smiled, then set down her backpack and began removing her clothes. 

“Wait, Tobin, what are you doing?”

“What”, Tobin said. Christen hesitated, and Tobin said, “Chris – no one is going to stumble upon us. We’re all alone here. C’mon”, she smiled mischeviously.

Christen turned to look at the creek. She just called me Chris, she thought. Only people close to me call me that. Does that mean something? And the creek does like inviting, she thought. She’d been working in the hot sun all day. She went to look back at Tobin, and all of a sudden Tobin was right beside her, fully naked.

“Hi”, Tobin breathed out.

Christen breath hitched, and she started to say hi back, but Tobin cut her off with a kiss, and then started to undo Christen’s shirt. Christen returned the kiss, and then pulled back to kick off her boots and remove her jeans and underwear. Tobin removed Christen’s shirt and bra, and then took Christen’s hand, who was now naked as well, and led her into the creek.

“It’s chilly” Christen said, sucking in a sharp breath, as they got up to their stomachs. It was chillier than she thought it would be, but it still felt good after a day of working in the hot summer sun.

“It’ll get warmer”, Tobin said with a mischievous smile. She pulled Christen into the deepest part, up to their necks, and then ducked her head down, came up, and planted another kiss on Christen’s lips.

Christen stared at Tobin, golden evening sunlight glinting off of her wet hair. “You’re beautiful”, she whispered, and kissed Tobin back.

“So are you”, Tobin whispered back. Christen smiled and wrapped her arms around Tobin’s neck, and then she felt Tobin’s arms wrap around her waist. The two women stood there, tongues dancing, and then Christen felt Tobin’s hand move between her legs.

“Tobes”, Christen shuddered, inadvertently calling Tobin by the nickname she had heard Alex use when they had first met at the ranger station. She hadn’t meant to do that, it just kind of came out.

“Told you it would get warmer”, Tobin breathed out, registering that Christen had just called her by her nickname. She smiled and then gently pushed two fingers into Christen’s folds. She locked on with another kiss as Christen gasped, and gently pushed Christen towards a head-high rock at the edge of the water, fingers still inside her.

“Aarghh” Christen gave a high pitch cry, then laughed, as she almost tripped over a rock walking backwards, knee deep in water.

Tobin quickly wrapper her arms around her “I gotcha”, Tobin said, laughing lightly. She steadied Christen and then went back to kissing as they walked, arms around each other. They reached the rock and Tobin leaned Christen back against it. Her mouth went to Christen’s ear. “What do you want?” she whispered, then nibbled on Christen’s earlobe.

“You”, Christen breathed out. “I want you”, she said, and Tobin inserted two fingers back into Christen’s folds. 

“Oh my god”, Christen moaned as she laid back against the rock, spreading her legs. Her hands went to Tobin’s breasts.

“Chris…” Tobin gasped.

“Tobes…” Christen gasped back, her body in motion, Tobin’s fingers working inside her. “Fuck!” she cried out a few minutes later, a wave rolling over her body. She waited for it to pass, reveling in the feeling, then steadied herself and turned Tobin around in her arms. “Here”, she said, positioning Tobin over her leg, and then her hand went to Tobin’s clit, fingers working in circular motion. “How’s that?”

“Mmmmmm…” Tobin moaned, rocking on Christen’s thigh, her hand covering Christen’s. Christen’s mouth went to Tobin’s neck, her tongue drawing circles, and her other hand went to Tobin’s nipple, gently caressing. “Go inside me”, Tobin panted. Christen’s hand slid down, and two fingers entered Tobin’s center, thumb still working her clit.

“There?” Christen whispered, her tongue drawing circles on Tobin’s neck.

“Yeah.” Tobin’s breath hitched, arms going back over her head to touch Christen behind her.

“You’re so hot…” Christen breathed out, fingers working, thrusting and curling inside Tobin, 

“Oh my god”, Tobin shuddered, as she hit her climax, rocking on Christen’s thigh, arms behind her pulling Christen right up against her, fingers clutching Christen’s hair, knuckles white. Christen felt Tobin’s body stiffen and then relax, and then she kissed Tobin’s neck as Tobin rode out the waves. They stayed like that for a moment and then Tobin turned around. “Hey”, she breathed out, looking right into Christen’s eyes.

“Hey”, Christen breathed out back. Tobin planted a hard kiss on Christen’s mouth and then knelt down in front of Christen and put her mouth to Christen’s center. “Oh my god”, Christen gasped and grabbed Tobin’s hair with both fists as Tobin’s tongue danced circles on her clit and Tobin’s fingers pushed up inside her.

“How’s that?” Tobin asked, looking up?

“Jesus…Tobin…”, Christen said, shuddering.

********

“I’m enjoying having you here”, Tobin said.

Christen was lying on her side, half on Tobin, her head buried in the crook of Tobin’s neck. Tobin was on her back, one arm around Christen’s waist, the other under Christen’s head, fingers gently playing with her hair. After the creek they had come back to Tobin’s apartment, a small log cabin-style studio, with the bedroom area and bathroom on one side, kitchen area on the other, and a sofa and TV in the middle, and had gone straight to the bed, clothes falling to the floor, leaving a trail from the front door.

Christen looked up at Tobin and smiled, then leaned in for a gentle kiss. “I’m enjoying being here”, she said, then settled back down.

They laid in silence for another moment, and then Tobin asked, “Did you figure out how long you are going to be here?”

“In your bed?” Christen smirked.

“No, smarty pants”, Tobin smiled in return. “In North Carolina.”

“I’m not sure”, Christen said. “Why?”

“Because I think I don’t want you to leave”, Tobin said, her fingers gently twirling Christen’s hair.

“Well, if you keep doing that, I think I might not be able to leave”, Christen teased. She closed her eyes and started to purr.

“Park ranger convinces archaeologist into skipping Nobel prize excavation for cuddling”, Tobin quipped.

Christen laughed. “Goofball.”

“You love it”, Tobin said. She kissed Christen’s forehead and then said, “Any chance you can get away tomorrow?”

“I’m not sure”, Christen said. “Why?”

“There’s somewhere I want to take you.”

“Ooooohhhh, that sounds intriguing”, Christen said. She tilted her head up and smiled.

“I promise, I’ll make it worth your while”, Tobin said.

“Better than today?” Christen jested.

Tobin gazed at her for a moment. She’s…amazing, Tobin thought, and then said, “Well…it won’t be any worse”, then smiled suggestively and tilted her head down for a kiss.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Been away for a few days with real life. Anyway, I'm going to try another sex scene. Also, this is where the story takes a bit of a turn.
> 
> Thanks as always for reading.

As it turned out, Christen had to spend the next few days at the site to finish up work for a report due to Abby, but the day after she finished she asked Rose and the team if they would be okay without her for a day.

“We’ll be fine, Doctor”, Rose said in her usual upbeat manner. “Go enjoy a day off. You earned it.”

“Thanks Rose. Want me to take a walkie talkie?” The team had high-powered radios that DAPO supplied them for communication in the field in isolated places, but Rose told her no need.

“That’s okay, Doctor. I’m sure we’ll be fine for 24 hours”, Rose said with a smile. So Christen and Tobin took a backpack and a tent from the center and spent the day hiking. It was now late afternoon, and Christen and Tobin reached a clearing on a ledge.

“Check this out”, Tobin said, gesturing down.

“Whoa”, Christen breathed out. Before them was a hundred-foot waterfall, cascading down into a large pool about fifty feet in diameter. Beyond that was the forest, the trees and foliage bathed in golden late afternoon sunlight.

“Beautiful, huh?” Tobin said. She sat down on a rock and pulled out the canteen. She took a drink and then handed it to Christen.

“It’s amazing”, Christen said, taking a drink and sitting down next to Tobin.

“It’s funny – all you see is forest”, Tobin said, contemplatively.

“I know, right? Not a building in sight.”

“It’s like you can forget that cities even exist, surrounded by all of this. But, in reality, the forests are actually shrinking”, Tobin said thoughtfully.

“True”, Christen said.

“We keep building and building, more high rises and malls, and taking and taking more natural resources…”, Tobin said wistfully. “I hope we don’t lose this”, she said, spreading her arms in reference to the forest. She paused for a moment and then looked at Christen and said, “I know I keep saying it, but it’s just…I don’t know, really important to me, to keep this place, and this town. I mean, it’s home for me. The only one I have.”

Christen stared at Tobin for a moment, thinking, and then said, “I understand.” Then she leaned in and gave her a kiss. “Hey pretty lady”, she said.

“Hey you”, Tobin said. The two women gazed at each other for a moment. “C’mon – I want to show you something”, Tobin said with a smile. She stood up and grabbed Christen’s hand, then led her down a trail towards the pool at the base of the waterfall. They dropped the backpack and the tent at the edge of the pool and then headed for the waterfall.

“Tobin, where are we going?” Christen asked.

“Behind the waterfall”, Tobin said.

“What?” Christen said.

“Come on”, Tobin said with a smile, then grabbed Christen’s hand and led her down a narrow path towards the base of the waterfall. “We’re gonna get a little bit wet”, she said with a smile, then pulled Christen through the base of the waterfall into a cave.

“Aaeeeiiiee!”, Christen yelped as water dumped on them as they ran through. Tobin laughed, and Christen looked around.

“Where are we, Tobie?”

They were in a large cave. In the middle of the cave water, welled up into another pool, mirroring the one on the other side of the fall. Tobin spread her arms. "This, supposedly, is a gold mine.”

"Wait, what? There gold mines this deep in the forest?"

"No. Most of them are south of town. But supposedly there are a few in the forest, and supposedly this is one of them."

“Wow”, Christen said. Christen looked back towards the waterfall, the daylight fighting to make its way through. “So did anyone find gold in here?” Christen asked, as her eyes adjusted to the semi-darkness.

"I don't know", Tobin said. "But there wasn't enough evidence I guess to do a full scale mining excavation. I mean, they'd to pretty much steamroll the forest with tanks to get trucks and stuff in here this deep, so they just let it go. If there's gold in here, no one got it."

"And do they still work the other mines for gold?"

“No”, Tobin said and chuckled. “There hasn’t been gold found here since like my great great great grandparents lived here”, she said and then smiled.

“Well I don’t know, goofball", Christen playfully shot back. "So...what are we doing here? Looking for gold?" she joked.

Tobin turned around and smiled. "No silly", she said, then her voice turned soft and serious. "I wanted to make love at a waterfall."

"Oh", Christen said, then smiled slightly. "Is this where you take all your girls?"

Tobin smiled back at her. "No, weirdo", she said, then planted a soft kiss on her lips. "Hi."

"Hi."

“You’re sweaty”, Tobin said and smiled.

"Oh no, not this again", Christen rolled her eyes playfully.

“Wanna cool off?”

“I feel like this is becoming a thing”, Christen smirked.

“Maybe” Tobin said. She planted a deep kiss on her lips, then proceeded to remove Christen’s clothes, and Christen at the same time tried to remove Tobin’s. They ended up laughing, tripping over each other, but somehow it made for the perfect jumbled mess. Naked, they waded into the water.

“Hey you”, Tobin breathed out in the semi-darkness. She wrapped her arms around Christen’s waist and leaned in for a kiss.

“Hey”, Christen breathed back.

******** 

“Mmmmm…Tobie”, Christen breathed, her head back and her eyes closed.

“Hey gorgeous”, Tobin whispered back. They were back outside the cave, in a tent on the clearing overlooking the waterfall, Christen on her back, Tobin over her. Tobin put her thigh between Christen’s legs and pushed, then put her mouth to Christen’s ear. “Is this okay?” she asked, then gently took Christen’s earlobe into her mouth.

“Yeah”, Christen breathed out, her body rocking at the contact. They stayed like that for moment, and then she moved her hand to Tobin’s center.

“Mmmmmm”, Tobin moaned, as Christen ran her finger across Tobin’s clit, then slipped a finger into her folds. She moaned again and then ran a hand over Christen’s breasts, lightly pinching her nipples, then trailed her tongue down from Christen’s neck to her chest. She slid her hand down to Christen’s center, lightly circling Christen’s clit with two fingers, then slipped them into Christen’s folds.

“Yes”, Christen moaned, one hand on Tobin’s center, the other clutching a fistful of Tobin’s hair. She started working her fingers faster into Tobin, but Tobin grabbed her hand and looked up.

“Not yet”, she said, reserving herself, looking at Christen with smoky eyes. “You first”, and moved her mouth from Christen’s chest down to her center. Her tongue went to Christen’s clit, while her fingers sped up their thrusts in Christen’s folds.

“Fuck”, Christen moaned, her other hand now grabbing Tobin’s hair. Tobin stopped licking and took Christen’s clit in her mouth and sucked, and curled her fingers inside Christen. “Oh my god”, Christen gasped, and her back arched as she hit her climax. She rode it out, tugging on Tobin’s hair, then pulled Tobin up, gave her a hard kiss, and flipped them over.

“Chris…” Tobin breathed out.

“My turn”, Christen said, sliding down Tobin’s chest. She moved a had to Tobin’s entrance and pushed two fingers inside.

“Oh god”, Tobin huffed out, still excited from her near-climax just moments ago, her breath becoming shallower. She grabbed Christen’s hair with one hand and moved her other hand to her breasts, as Christen’s tongue pulsed against her clit. “Oh my god…”

“How’s this, baby?” Christen came up, eyes meeting Tobin’s.

“Feels…” Tobin breathed, unable to get the rest out. Christen smiled and then went back to Tobin’s clit, tongue circling, fingers thrusting, her other hand under Tobin’s leg, nails grazing her ass. They stayed like that for a moment, in rhythm, and then Christen moved her tongue off Tobin’s clit and pushed it up and into her. “Shit!” Tobin swore. Christen stayed there for a moment, pushing her tongue in and out, and then then flattened it out and dragged it up along Tobin’s folds. “Fuck!” Tobin screamed as Christen’s tongue hit her clit and she hit her climax, her body rocking against Christen’s mouth, both hands tangled in Christen’s long hair, fingers turning white. Christen continued to lick, then kissed the insides of Tobin’s thighs as she came down.

“Oh my god”, Tobin breathed out, as Christen slowly made her way up Tobin’s body. She stopped at Tobin’s neck, nipping at the soft skin. Tobin giggled and then cupped Christen’s cheeks and planted a deep kiss on her lips. “Hi”, she breathed.

“Hi”, Christen breathed back, then settled down on top of Tobin and buried her face in the crook of Tobin’s neck.

******** 

“Good morning, gorgeous”, Tobin whispered.

“Good morning, beautiful”, Christen responded in kind. She smiled at Tobin and then tilted her head up and gave Tobin a kiss.

“How’d you sleep”? Tobin asked.

“Good. You wore me out”, Christen said and smiled.

Tobin smiled back. “Likewise”, she said, then said, “You called me ‘baby’.”

“What?”

“Last night. You called me ‘baby’.”

Christen tilted her head up. “I’m sorry – was that bad?”

Tobin giggled. “No…it was nice. Really nice. It’s just that…no one’s called me that in a while.” She paused and then said, “baby.”

Christen smiled back. “No one’s called me that in a while either”, she said, and then gave Tobin a kiss. Tobin smiled, and Christen asked, “What time is it?” She went to move and then grimaced. “Ulgh…we’re like stuck together”, she said and laughed.

“Ewwww, I know”, Tobin said. “Sleeping outdoors, summer, no clothes, no AC, sweat, and-”

“Okay, you can stop right there”, Christen laughed, then planted a smiling kiss on Tobin. Tobin started to kiss back hard but then Christen smiled and said “Time, goofball”, reminding Tobin.”

Tobin smirked and took out her watch from her backpack. “Almost seven.”

Christen sighed. “I supposed I should get back.”

Tobin stared at Christen for a moment, eyes sleepy but satiated, hair mussed up, eyes sleepy but satiated. She took Christen’s chin in her fingers and gave her a kiss. “I don’t want you to leave”, she said earnestly.

Christen smiled at Tobin. “I don’t want to leave either”, she said. She kissed Tobin back, then curled into her.

“We should stay out here, forever”, Tobin said in a serious tone of voice, then jested, “Right here, in this tent.”

Christen giggled. “Sounds nice, Tobie, but I should get back.”

“Alright”, Tobin feigned a sigh. “I guess we can go back”, she said, but then looked into Christen’s eyes. “Do we have to hurry?” she asked, raising her eyebrows suggestively. 

Christen smiled back. “Well, I suppose not”, Christen said. She kissed Tobin back and then started making her way down Tobin’s body…

********

Later in the afternoon Tobin and Christen made it back to Tobin’s apartment.

“God, I need a shower”, Christen said.

“Me too”, Tobin said.

“You wanna go first?”

“No, you can. Or, together…?” Tobin asked.

Christen laughed. “I’d say yes, but we’ve practically been attached at the hip for the last twenty four hours. Maybe I could use a few minutes to myself.”

Tobin pouted playfully but then smiled. “No prob”, she said, then gave Christen a kiss and sent her off. “There’s an extra towel on the rack”, she called out.

“Okay thanks”, Christen called back. Tobin heard the water turn on, and then she sat down on her couch. Exhausted but happy, she thought, and closed her eyes. She stayed like that for a moment and was starting to drift off, when she heard a phone vibrate. Not her phone. Christen’s. She hear it vibrate a few more times and then it stopped. Oh well, Tobin thought. Christen can check it when she gets out of the shower. She closed her eyes and started to drift again, when she heard her phone ring. Not her cell – her land line. She looked over to the phone on the kitchen table. Not usually a line people used, although cell reception was sometimes hit-or-miss. She stared at it as it rang again, then got up off the couch, walked over, and picked it up.

“Hello?”

“Ranger Heath?”

“Yes, this is Tobin Heath.”

“This is Rose, I’m one of Dr. Press’s assistants.” She sounded out of breath, like she had been exercising. “I’m at the ranger station. Is Dr. Press with you?

“Uhhhh…yeah”, Tobin said hesitantly, not sure if Christen was breaking any rules by fraternizing with the locals.

“Oh thank God, I tried calling her cell, and I remembered she didn’t take a walkie talkie with her yesterday. May I speak with her please? It’s urgent.”

“Well, she’s-”

“Please, it’s urgent”, Rose said.

“Uhhhh, okay, hold on a moment”, Tobin said. She put the receiver down and walked over to the shower. “Chris – it’s Rose for you. She says it’s urgent.”

“What?” Christen said. She turned off the water, took a towel, wrapped it around herself, and came out of the bathroom. 

“It’s Rose, and she says it’s urgent. She’s on my landline.”

“Wait – she called you here? How did she get this number?”

“She’s at the ranger station. Alex or someone else probably gave it to her.”

“And why do you have a landline?” Christen mocked.

“Because cell service is spotty out in these here parts”, Tobin said, putting some country twang in her voice. She picked up the receiver and looked at Christen. “It’s for you, Dr. Press”, Tobin said mocking her back.

Christen stuck her tongue out at Tobin and took the receiver. “This is Dr. Press.” 

“Dr. Press, this is Rose. Sorry to bother you here. We tried calling your cell.”

“Yes, yes, we – well, I – just got back, I was, um…camping in the woods, well, Tobin, Ranger Heath and I wer-”

“Doctor, I’m at the ranger station. You need to get out to the site right now”, Rose said.

Christen stared at the phone. Rose never cut her off, and Rose usually didn’t sound stressed. “Rose – it’s mid-afternoon already.”

“I know.”

“What’s happening? Is everything okay?”

“I’m…not sure…just please – hurry out to the site”, Rose said, and then hung up.

********

Christen and Tobin entered the site less than two hours later. Rose and the rest of the team minus Allie were waiting for them.

“Rose, what’s going on”? Christen asked.

“We expanded the excavation area around the skeleton that way”, she said, pointing down creek, “and we came across this”, Rose said, crouching down near the creek.

“What is it?” Christen asked again. Rose dug her fingers into the sediment and held up a small object. Christen walked over to Rose and took the object from her.

“It’s everywhere”, Rose said, motioning around the creek bed.

Christen held up the object. It was about the size of a large walnut, and it glinted in the midday sunlight. She stared at it for a moment. “Nooooo, it can’t be…” she gasped.

“Chris – what is it?” Tobin asked.

Christen stared at the object for a moment longer and then looked over at Rose, and then at Tobin. “It’s gold”, she gasped in disbelief.


	7. Chapter 7

“Wait, what?” Tobin said confused.

“It’s gold”, Christen said again and handed Tobin the piece.

Tobin looked at the piece, turning it over in her hand. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

“How do you know?

“Because I’ve studied minerology as well as archaeology. I told you that, Tobie.”

“Chris, it can’t be.”

“Well, it is.”

“No one has found gold here in like a hundred years”, Tobin said, handing the piece back to Christen.

“Well, this is gold, babe”, Christen said, then quickly looked around to see if anyone had noticed that she had just slipped and called Tobin ‘babe’. No one either heard or seemed to pay it any mind. Bigger things to think about than my love life, I guess, Christen thought, looking at the gold in her hand.

“Wow. Well, okay…” Tobin said, then looked at Christen. “So…what does this mean?” she asked, unsure of what to even say.

Christen stared at the creek, thinking for a moment. “I don’t know”, she said, then turned to Rose. “How much is there?”

“I’m not sure, but it looks like it continues down creek. How far down, I don’t know, but Allie went to check”, Rose said.

“There’s a lot of it”, Allie said, walking back up creek towards the group, a shovel in her hand. “I just went down the creek like two hundred meters, doing quick spot digs. It’s all around, just under the surface. There may be more down even further, I just didn’t make it that far.”

“Oh my God”, Christen gasped, stunned.

“What should we do, Doctor?” Neil asked.

Christen thought for a moment, then said, “I have to tell Director Wambach. I’m going to go back to the ranger station. You guys stay here. Continue looking.” The team nodded and Christen motioned to Tobin, and the two of them started back to the station.

“Christen, who are you calling?” Tobin asked.

“My boss, Abby Wambach”, Christen said. “She’s the director of the Stanford Archaeological Center.”

“This discovery, this gold…what does it mean?”

“I don’t know, but I have to let Abby know”, Christen said, trying to process what she just saw. “She’ll know what to do.”

“What’s going to happen?”

“I don’t know.”

“Do you think that-”

Christen stopped walking, whirled around and faced Tobin. “Tobin – I don’t know, okay?!” Tobin cringed, and Christen said, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. It’s just…something like this…finding treasure on a dig… has never happened to me before. So, I don’t know what to do or what’s going to happen.”

Tobin stared at Christen. “Okay, it’s just-”

“Babe”, Christen cut her off, knowing what Tobin was going to say. She took Tobin’s hands and lightly squeezed them reassuringly. “Things will be fine, okay?” Tobin stared at Christen, eyes wide, and Christen smiled reassuringly and gave Tobin a gentle kiss. “Things will be fine, I promise.” Tobin nodded, and then Christen said, “Come on, let’s go”, and the two women continued their hike back to the station.

********

“Abby”, Christen said, calling from the office in the ranger station.

“Christen”, Abby responded in her business tone. “I didn’t expect your progress call until tomorrow. Is everything okay?”

“Well…something very strange happened”, Christen said.

“What happened?”

“Well, um…we found…uh…gold.”

“Say again?”

“We found gold, while we were excavating the skeleton.”

“Did you just say you found gold?” Abby confirmed.

“Yes.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive. It’s gold, Abby. Real gold.”

“How is that possible?” Abby asked.

“I guess…I don’t know, but I mean…this is a previously unmapped section of the forest, remember? Tobie was mapping it when she found the skeleton.”

“Who?”

“Uh, Tobie-Tobin. Ranger Heath.”

“Oh, right”, Abby said, then paused for a moment. “Okay…so…how much gold is there?”

“I don’t know exactly, but I think a lot. It’s all around the skeleton, and goes down the creek bed at least two hundred meters.”

“Wow. So….you’ve found modern day gold mine”, Abby said, genuinely awed.

“I guess so”, Christen said. She paused for a moment and then asked, “What do we do?”

“Hmmmm…” Abby was silent for a moment, then said, “I’m not sure exactly, but I’m going to have to tell DAPO.”

“Wait”, Christen said, all of a sudden alarmed. “Tell DAPO? What are they going to do?”

“I don’t know, but I have to let them know.”

I don’t want them to compromise the dig”, Christen said.

“I’ll make sure they don’t. But we have to tell them. They’re funding this dig, we’re obligated to tell them what we’re finding.”

“Maybe we can just keep quiet about the gold?” Christen suggested.

“No. We have to report the finding. That’s procedure. We catalog and report anything we find. You know that.” Abby was business, official and by the book.

“Well, okay”, Christen said, worried. Her mind went to a bad place, thinking about how much DAPO was driven by money, imagining an army of people invading the woods to mine the riches. “As long as they don’t disrupt the dig.”

“They won’t. I’ll make sure of it”, Abby said again. “Where are you?”

“At the central ranger station. My team is still in the field.”

Abby was silent for a moment and then said, “Okay, keep the team in the field. Stay at the station. I’m calling DAPO right now. I’ll call you back in a few minutes at the station.”

“Okay, I’ll be standing by”, Christen said, then hung up.

“What did your boss say?” Tobin asked.

“She needs to call the people who finance us, DAPO.”

“Uh oh”, Tobin said, getting an innately bad feeling.

“Tobie-”

“Financial backers usually only have one thing in mind – money. I can only imagine what they’re going to say when they hear that the dig they’re financing stuck gold – like, literally.”

“Tobie – things will be fine, okay?”, Christen said again. She smiled and took Tobin’s hands in her own, and Tobin smiled back. “I’ll make sure tha-”

“Oh my GODDDDDD!” Alex said, busting through the door. “Did I hear you say you struck gold? Gold?! Where?”

“Al-” Tobin started.

“Now that’s exciting! Yesssss!!!” Alex hissed. She threw a fist pump in the air and then looked at Christen and Tobin.

“Al – were you eavesdropping?” Tobin asked.

Alex didn’t answer, just kept rolling on. “And why are you two holding hands? O-M-G…are you two…like, hooking up?” Before either Christen or Tobin could say anything, Alex gushed, “That’s exciting too!!! Finally, we have some excitement around here!” then practically skipped out of the office. Christen watched her skip away and then looked at Tobin.

“Uh…Tobes…?”

“Dear lord…” Tobin said. She smiled and rolled her eyes.

“Well, so much for keeping this a secre-” Christen started when the phone rang. Tobin went to answer it.

“Thank you for calling Nant-”

“It’s Director Wambach calling for Dr. Press”, Abby cut Tobin off.

“Oh, right, hold on”, Tobin said. She handed the phone to Christen. “It’s for you. Someone likes to get right to it.”

Christen rolled her eyes. “Thank you, babe”, she said, then took the receiver. “Hello?”

“Christen, I spoke with DAPO”, Abby said.

“Okay…” Christen said, then paused. Something in Abby’s voice had changed.

“We’re coming out.”

“Wait – who? Who’s ‘we’?”

“Jill Ellis, she’s the CEO of DAPO, and I.”

“Wait – why is the CEO of DAPO coming out?” Christen asked.

“Because if this is real gold, this is going to be huge.”

“Oh god”, Christen groaned. “They’re not going to mess up the dig are they?”

“No, they said they wouldn’t. If anything, they’ll keep funding it longer. Think of the money if this is real gold. They could fund us indefinitely.”

“But what-”

“As of now they will let us finish up first, and then they will start mining. The gold’s not going anywhere.”

“But they’ll probably want to mine every last bit of it”, Christen said.

“Probably.”

“Oh my god”, Christen said.

“This is actually good for you, Christen. Not only will you have found the oldest hominid in North America, but you’ve found gold as well. This could make you the most famous archaeologist in history. I see a Nobel Prize in your future. Plus, this is good for the center. Think of the funding we’ll have for a long time to come.”

“Well, yes, and that’s good, but what do you think will happen to this town?”

“I don’t know, but I’m sure they’ll make some money off this. Think of the tourism, people coming from all over to try their hand at prospecting. They could become the biggest tourist town in the country. And, DAPO will probably set up shop to mine, and will probably need some local help. Think how many jobs that will be.”

Christen looked over at Tobin, who was listening to her side of the conversation intently. “But the town is a historical frontier town, one of the last in the nation. It should be preserved, don’t you think?”

“Or course, but well, you know…money talks.”

“I thought we were in this for science, Abby”, Christen said.

“We are, but there’s nothing wrong with science being profitable”, Abby said.

Christen paused for a moment and then asked point-blank, “Abby – what’s going on? Is something wrong?”

“Nothing. Nothing’s wrong”, Abby said.

“Are you sure?” Christen asked. Abby sounded evasive.

“I’m sure we can work with the town to preserve its historic culture and still make a profit. Anyway, we’re flying out first thing in the morning. I’ll keep u posted when we land in North Carolina”, she said, then hung up abruptly.

“O-okay”, Christen said and hung up, then looked at Tobin, who was looking back expectantly.

********

“So, what’s going to happen?” Tobin asked. It was nighttime. They were laying in Tobin’s bed, Tobin on her side, Christen snuggled in behind her.

“You’ve been asking me that for the last two hours”, Christen said lightly. “The only time I could get you to stop asking me was by seducing you into making love with me.”

Tobin laughed lightly. “I know, I know. I guess I’m just…I don’t know…anxious, or something.”

“Well, my boss is coming out with the head of DAPO. She’ll know what to do.”

“What are they going to do?” 

“They’ll probably go to the site and try to authenticate that the gold is real.”

“Then what? I mean, if it’s real?”

“It’s real. I just don’t know what’s going to happen.”

“Hmmmm…” Tobin said, thinking.

“Tobie – I know you’re worried, but let’s just see what happens, okay?”

“You seemed unsure when you hung up with your boss earlier.”

I am unsure, Christen thought. Abby sounded different when she called me back. Did DAPO say something to her? She wanted to share this thought with Tobin, but she didn’t want Tobin to worry any more than she was already, so out loud she said, “I’m sure things will fine, Tobie”, Christen said, then kissed the back of Tobin’s neck.

Tobin smiled and then turned around to face Christen. She looked up with big eyes. “Promise?”

Christen stared at Tobin for a moment. I wish I could say yes for sure, she thought. Then she smiled and said, “Yes babe. I promise. Everything is going to be alright”, then planted a reassuring kiss on Tobin’s lips.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I won't be able to update for a few days (going out of town) but this chapter is a bit longer.
> 
> Thanks for reading and commenting!

“Hey Abby”, Christen said, as she and Tobin walked into the ranger station. Abby was there along with half a dozen other people.

“Christen”, Abby smiled and shook her hand. “This is Jill Ellis, CEO of DAPO”, she said, motioning to woman in a sharp business suit. She motioned to the rest of the group. “These folks are with DAPO as well.” Christen looked them over. They looked all business, and one of them, a woman in her late 30s, with brown hair, looked decidedly unfriendly. She was dressed in black jeans, a black tank top and black combat boots, and Christen thought she looked like a mercenary.

“Ahhhh, Dr. Press”, Jill said and shook Christen’s hand. “The archaeologist who discovered the gold, and the skull that started this whole thing. You’re going to be famous”, she smiled. 

“Well, my team, not me, discovered the gold, and the skull…that would actually be this woman right here”, Christen said, motioning to Tobin. “This is Senior Park Ranger Tobin Heath. She discovered it.”

Jill turned her attention to Tobin. “Quite a discovery, young lady”, she said and smiled.

Tobin didn’t smile back. “So, what happens now?” she asked.

“First we need to authenticate the gold. Then, based on the results, we’ll figure out next steps”, Jill said.

“Are you guys going to tear this place to the ground?” Tobin asked politely but point blank.

“I beg your pardon?” Jill said politely but sharply.

“I don’t want you guys to upend the park and this town, mining for gold”, Tobin said defensively.

Jill chuckled and then stood right in front of Tobin. “Young lady – whatever happens will benefit the park, and your town, okay?” She smiled at Tobin reassuringly and then looked around the room. “So, shall we head out to the site?”

********

“Hey Rose”, Christen called out as she, Tobin, Abby, Jill and the DAPO entourage reached the site.

“Who are all these people, Doctor?” Rose asked.

“They’re with DAPO”, Christen said, rolling her eyes slightly so only Rose could see. “They’re here to authenticate the gold.”

“They’re not going to disrupt the site, are they?” Rose said, worry creeping into her voice.

“Nope”, Christen said forcefully, looking at Jill.

“Why is everyone here treating us like we’re the bad guys?” Jill laughed lightly. “We’re just here to help. Besides, we’re paying for this little shindig, we have a right to know what we’re paying for, yes?” She smiled at everyone and then looked at the unfriendly looking woman with brown hair. “Carli?”

Carli stepped forward and quickly surveyed the site, then walked towards the creek next to the skeleton. She squatted down, looked around, and then pulled a piece of gold from the creek bed. She stood up, took a handkerchief out from her back pocket and wiped down the piece, then held it up to the sunlight.

“Well?” Jill asked.

“Pretty sure it’s real”, Carli said, and then walked over to one of the other members of the DAPO party, who handed her a metal briefcase. She walked into the tent at the site and put the briefcase on a table, then opened it up and took out a small vial.

“What’s that?” Tobin asked Christen, grabbing Christen’s arm.

“I think it’s nitric acid”, Christen said. “She’s going to test if the gold is real.”

“How?”

“She’s going to apply a drop to the gold. If there is no reaction, then it’s real gold.”

Carli removed the dropper from the vial. She held up the piece of gold and dropped three drops of nitric acid onto it, then counted to twenty.

“Well…?” Jill asked again.

Carli counted ten more seconds, then turned to Jill. “No reaction”, she said and then smiled. “It’s real.”

“Oh ho ho ho”, Jill breathed out and smiled like she had just won the lottery. Carli wiped the nitric acid off the piece of gold and tossed it to Jill. Jill caught it, then held it up to the light. “Well, I’ll be damned.” She marveled at it for a moment and then turned to Abby. “How much is there?”

Abby looked at Christen. “Dr. Press?”

“Well, we’re not exactly sure, but as far as we can tell it extends at least a couple hundred meters down the creek bed, based on a cursory scan.”

Jill stared at Christen. “And there could be more…?”

“Well, we can’t say for sure, but-”

“But there could be, yes?”

“It’s possible”, Christen said, reservedly.

“Well, this is wonderful!”, Jill gushed, looking around the other members of DAPO, who were also smiling. “I smell a Nobel Prize for you”, she said to Christen, then looked at Carli. “Let’s put things in motion, shall we?” Carli smiled and nodded, then started to lead the DAPO crew back towards the ranger station.

“What’s going to happen to the site? This park? Our town?” Tobin asked, looking between Christen, Abby and Jill.

“Stop worrying my dear,” Jill said. She went to touch Tobin’s arm, but Tobin pulled away. Jill stared at her but never stopped smiling. “We can figure all of that out soon. Right now, I think it’s time to make plans for celebration, don’t you? How about tonight.” She leaned in to Tobin and said, “Why don’t you tell us where the best place in town to get a meal and a drink is. I’m buying”, she said and winked at Tobin, who scowled at her. “Abby, Dr. Press – brilliant work. I’ll be sure the center is properly credited and compensated”, she said, then turned around and followed the rest of the crew DAPO out.

“Babe”, Tobin said, grabbing Christen’s arm, worried. “I don’t like her”, she said, referring to Jill.

“I don’t either”, Christen said. “But I’m sure Abby won’t let anything bad happen.”

********

Tobin, Christen, Christen’s excavation team, Alex, Abby, Jill and the rest of the DAPO crew that had traveled to Tehacha were at the diner. In addition, the diner was fuller than usual. Word had gotten out that something important was happening, and that important scientists were in town.

“May I have your attention, everyone”, Jill said to the group. She raised her glass. “Well, what a wonderful gathering”, she beamed, looking around. “I’d like to thank everyone on our team, the park staff, and the town of Tehacha. It’s such a pleasure to be working together with all of you, and we look forward to a prosperous future!” Jill toasted, and most everyone but Tobin toasted back.

“Hey, you okay?” Christen asked Tobin.

“Yeah, I’m fine”, Tobin said, taking a long drink. “I’m just-.”

“Kind of worried, I know”, Christen said. “Well, you look beautiful.” Tobin was wearing a violet color dress and her beige cowboy boots. Christen smiled. “And a little tipsy.”

“Thanks”, Tobin said and smiled back. “I’ve had a few.” She nuzzled into Christen lightly. “And thanks for trying to cheer me up. You look…amazing. “Christen was wearing a black cocktail dress and heels.

“Anytime, babe”, Christen said. She wanted to kiss Tobin but didn’t since they were in public.

"Do I look amazing too?” Alex says as she walked up, smiling.

Tobin laughed. No one could lighten the mood like Alex. “Yes, Al – you look amazing too.” Alex was wearing a light green floral pattern dress and heels.

“Awwww thanks.” She stared at Tobin for a moment and then said, ”You look down, Tobito Bobito. What’s wrong?”

Tobin sighed. “I just…I don’t know… I just don’t like this Jill woman”, Tobin said. “I mean, I know she’s your boss, or your backer, or whatever”, she said to Christen, “but I just…feel like she’s going to do something bad to this town.”

“Like what?” Alex asked?

“I don’t know…roll in with tanks? Mine all of our gold? Destroy our forest and turn this place into a strip mall?” Tobin said. Alex raised her eyebrow skeptically, and Tobin said, “I’m worried that this place is going to look like D.C. in three years. That we’ll lose all of our natural beauty.”

“Well…that can’t happen as long as I’m here”, Alex said with a smile and pointed to herself. “Natural beauty, get it?”

“Okay, silly”, Tobin said back, smiling at Alex’s ridiculousness.

“Well, maybe it’d be nice to have a new shoe store in town.”

“Al…”

“I’m just kidding, Bobito.”

“Al, I’m serious. We could be in trouble here. Look, I know you’re just trying to make light and brighten my mood.” She smiled. “You’re always good about that, and I love you for it. It’s just that, well…I’m worried about losing this place. This is my home. And it’s the only one I have.”

“I know, Tobes. And I was just being dumb. I know I joke a lot about how things are boring here, but they’re not. I know how valuable it is to have a historic town like ours.”

“So, are we plotting on how to prevent the evil corporate raiders from destroying our site and taking your gold?” Rose said, entering the circle.

“You must be psychic”, Christen said. “Rose, this is Alex, park ranger, and you know Tobin, she’s been coming out to the dig.”

“Yes, quite frequently”, Rose said, and Christen blushed slightly. “Hi Tobin. And helloooo, Alex.”

“Hellooo Rose”, Alex said, sticking out her hand, and Rose shook it.

“You have soft hands”, Rose said. “I expected a ranger to have rougher hands.”

“I moisturize”, Alex said with a smile. She was still holding Rose’s hand.

“Do you guys need a minute alone?” Tobin said jokingly.

“Hey, no one needs a minute alone with one of my archaeologists”, Christen said lightly, and Tobin laughed.

“Oh come on”, Alex said, ‘You two are almost marrie- hey, where are you going?” she said to Tobin, who had overheard Jill, Abby and Carli talking a few feet away and was now on her way toward them.

“We appreciate the support”, Abby said to Jill.

“Of course! You know we support the center any way we can”, Jill said with a big grin.

“You’ll be real thankful for the support we can give you after we loot this place clean”, Carli said, rubbing her fingers together.

“Loot this place clean?” Tobin said angrily, coming up to the group. “Is that what you just said?”

“Ranger Heath”, Jill said, smiling wide.

“Loot my ass”, Tobin said.

“Hey, watch your-” Carli started, but Tobin kept on.

“I grew up here. This my is home, and I, well, we – the people of this town, like it the way it is. You’re not gonna change a damn thing.”

“Ranger Heath”, Abby said. “I’m not sure what are you talking about or where is this coming from-”

“I know what you want to do”, Tobin said to Jill, taking a step closer.

Carli put her glass down and started to move towards Tobin, but Jill put her hand up to stop her. She looked at Tobin and stood right in front of her and smiled. “My dear, please, relax.”

“I swear, if you’re planning to ‘loot’ this town-”

“'Looting’ – you make it sound like we’re pirates or something”, Jill said with a chuckle. “Ranger Heath, we’re just here to help. We want what’s best for the town. Whatever we do, our archaeological friends would need to approve it” she said, nodding towards Abby, “as well as your mayor”, she said, nodding towards Jim Higgins, the town mayor, who was standing across the room.

“So, you’re not going to destroy the forest or our town?”

“’Destroy’? Of course not.” Jill chuckled again.

“Okay”, Tobin said, settling down a bit but still tense.

“Have a drink and relax. We should be celebrating a new partnership. We’ll all be working together soon”, Abby said. She went to graze Tobin’s arm with her fingers, but Tobin recoiled. Jill stared at her hard but kept the smile on her face. “Enjoy the party, Ranger Heath”, she said with a wink.

Tobin stared back at her, then looked at Carli, who had been eyeballing Tobin the whole time, then turned around, put her drink down on a table, and walked past Christen and Alex.

“Whoa, Tobie”, Christen said. “Where are you going?

“I don’t like her”, Tobin said.

“Who?” Christen said, following behind her.

“That Jill woman. She’s a snake.”

“Wait, Tobie”, Christen said, lightly grabbing Tobin’s arm.

“I need to go”, Tobin said as she headed the door.

“Where?”

“Anywhere, just…out of here”, Tobin said to Christen.

“Here comes the hookup”, Alex said, seeing Christen and Tobin leaving the diner together.

“Uhhhh…not quite, Alex”, Christen said, and Rose lightly whacked Alex in the arm.

“Circumstance, Alex?” Rose chided lightly.

Tobin just rolled her eyes at Alex and then turned around and headed for the door. Christen looked at Rose and then smiled slightly at Alex. “I’d…better…go”, she said.

“Take care of her tonight”, Alex said in earnest. Christen nodded and smiled, and then headed after Tobin.

“What happened there?” Alex asked Rose.

“I’m not quite sure, but from what I gathered, I think Tobin’s not as fond of that sharp dressed corporate woman from DAPO as she is of Dr. Press.”

“You think?” Alex said cheekily.

“Pretty sure”, Rose said back in kind. “I’m not too fond of DAPO either.” She looked over at Jill, and then looked at the bar. “But, they are paying for the drinks tonight.”

Alex giggled. “Well, might as well make the moneymen work in our favor”, she said, then looked at Rose’s almost empty glass, and then at her own. “Drink?”

********

“So…where to?” Christen said, after catching up with Tobin.

“I don’t know”, Tobin said. “I just didn’t want to be near that woman anymore.”

“Okay, I understand, Tobie.”

“Can we just walk for a bit?” Tobin said.

“Of course”, Christen said. They walked for a few blocks and ended up at a fountain in the town square, in front of the mayor’s office building.

“I like this fountain”, Tobin mused.

“It’s nice”, Christen said back.

“I used to come here as a kid and just stand in front of it and watch it.”

Christen looked at Tobin and smiled, then moved behind her and wrapped her arms around her. “Hey you”, she whispered.

“Hey, babe”, Tobin whispered back.

Christen smiled into the back of Tobin’s neck. “You just called me babe.”

Tobin turned around in Christen’s arms. “Thought I’d try it on for size.”

“And…how’d it fit?” Christen asked.

Tobin gazed into Christen’s eyes. “Good”, she said, then placed a soft kiss on Christen’s lips. 

“Mmmmmm”, Christen said. “I think it fits well too.”

Tobin leaned in for another kiss. “Wanna go back to my place…?”

“Oh, do I”, Christen said, and Tobin laughed. Tobin took Christen’s hand and led her away from the fountain. They walked for a few blocks and then reached Tobin’s apartment.

“Thanks for ditching the party and your team and your boss, and being here with me”, Tobin said as she shut the door.

“Of course. There’s no other place I’d rather be”, Christen replied.

Tobin sashayed up to Christen. “Even the diner, with snaky Jill paying for dinner and drinks?” Tobin smarted.

Christen smiled and wrapped her arms around Tobin’s waist. “That’s what Abby’s for, all the gladhanding”, she said, then pressed a kiss to Tobin’s lips.

“Mmmmmm”, Tobin said, then kissed Christen back. “Hey you”, she said.

“Hey pretty girl”, Christen said. She pressed her mouth to Tobin’s and then she looped her fingers under the shoulder straps of Tobin’s dress, gently pulled them to the side, and dropped Tobin’s dress over her cowboy boots down to the floor…

********

“Hey”, Tobin said. She and Christen were lying in Tobin’s bed, snuggled into each other. It was just past ten at night.

“Hey you”, Christen said back.

“I wanna go to the site.”

“What? Right now?” Christen said.

“Yeah, right now.”

“Tobie, it’s nighttime.”

“I know…”

“Why do you want to go now.?

“I don’t know, just feel like…” Tobin paused.

“Like what, babe?”

“Like, well, I don’t know…”

Christen sat up. “Tobie – what is it?”

“I don’t know…I just feel like maybe this is the last time I’m going to see that place…undisturbed.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. Maybe I’m just being silly. But I feel like ever since that Jill woman showed up, something bad is going to happen, like she’s going to tear this place up or something.”

“Tobie, I told you, nothing’s going to happen. I mean, it’s not like they can just start digging right away. There’s procedures and regulations and stuff.”

“Okay”, Tobin said, relaxing. Christen smiled at her, and then lightly kissed her on the forehead. “Well, maybe we can camp out there tonight anyway?” Tobin said. “We can pack so we already have everything we’ll need to spend the day out there tomorrow. We can spend the night under the stars, like the first night we met”, she said and smiled. “I mean, if you’re not too tired to go…”

Christen stared at her for a moment and then smiled. “I’d like that.”

“Okay”, Tobin said. She leaned in for a kiss and then got up. “Let’s go!” she said excitedly.

********

“Good morning, beautiful”, Christen said. After a short stop at Christen’s motel so she could change and grab some supplies, Christen and Tobin had driven to the ranger station in Christen’s car and had hit the trail, Tobin leading the way with a flashlight. Two hours later they had arrived at the site. They had spent an hour there just talking, then had camped a quarter mile away, up creek.

“Good morning, babe”, Tobin said.

“Still fitting?” Christen joked.

“What?”

“You calling me ‘babe’” Christen asked, smiling.

“Yes”, Tobin said, smiling back.

“Well, it still fits for me too”, Christen said, smiling. “How do you feel today?”

“Better, thanks”, Tobin said. “I’m sorry I was so nervous yesterday”, Tobin said.

“I understand, babe, it’s okay. It’s a lot to process”, Christen said. “What time is it?”

Tobin looked at her watch. “About seven.”

“Well, I guess we don’t need to hurry, Rose and the team probably won’t be out at the site for another hour or so”, Christen said.

“Then I guess we don’t need to rush?” Tobin said with a mischievous smile.

“I feel like we’ve done this before”, Christen laughed.

“Because we have”, Tobin laughed back, then gave Christen a deep kiss.

“We don’t need to rush”, Christen whispered. She returned the kiss and moved on top of Tobin, and started to make her way down Tobin’s body when a loud, thunderous explosion made them both jump.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, back from the weekend trip. Here's a bit of a longer chapter. Thanks for reading!

“What the hell was that?” Tobin said.

“It sounded like…an explosion”, Christen said.

“Why would there be an explosion way out here-”, Tobin started, then paused, and then said, “oh no…”

“Tobie, what is it?”

“C’mon, Chris”, Tobin said. They threw on their clothes and hurried down to the site, leaving the tent and their backpacks behind.

“Who are all these people?” Tobin asked, as she and Christen reached the site. At least three dozen people were milling around.

“I have no idea, and I don’t see any of my team here”, Christen said, and was about to keep walking towards the site’s outdoor tent when three guards in black tactical fatigues and machine guns stopped her and Tobin.

“Who are you?” one of the guards asked.

“I’m Dr. Christen Press, and this is my dig. Who the hell are you guys? And what are you doing at my site?”

“We’re security for the mining expedition.”

“Mining expedition?” Tobin repeated.

“That’s correct”, the guard said.

“And actually, it’s our site now”, Carli said, walking up, dressed in a black tactical uniform, same as the guards.

“What the hell is going on here?” Tobin said.

“We’re mining for gold”, Carli said with a big smile.

“What?” Tobin gasped.

“Listen-”, Christen said to Carli, then spotted Abby ten feet away. “Abby!” Christen walked up. “What on earth is going on here?”

“Christen, please, let me explain”, Abby said.

“We’re changing the operation from an archaeological excavation to a mining expedition”, Carli said, walking up.

“What?” Christen said.

“Your little bone digging party is over”, Carli said.

“Wait, what? What do you mean, ‘over’?” Christen said,

“And what the hell was that explosion?” Tobin asked.

“Dynamite”, Carli said, then made an explosion noise with her mouth and motion with her hands.

“Dynamite?! For what?” Christen said.

“What possible reason could you have for blowing up the forest?” Tobin asked angrily.

“How about you stick to chasing squirrels”, Carli said condescendingly to Tobin, “and you stick to digging up fossils”, she said to Christen, “and leave the gold mining to us, okay? Anyway, don’t worry”, she said to Christen, “your collection of old bones will be fine. We’re starting at the caves we found down creek, and we’re working our way back up, to give us time to pack up the bones for you.”

“What?” Christen said. “Abby, what-?” she looked at her boss for help. Abby started to talk, but Carli cut her off.

“We’re prepping the skeleton for transport back to the center. You’ll be able to examine it there”, Carli said definitively.

“You guys are packing it up? Hold on - you can’t just yank it out of the ground. We need to excavate it properly. There’s a process, and environmental factors to consider, and-”

“Director Wambach will be here to make sure we do things right”, Carli said.

“Christen, please”, Abby said. “You’re going to receive full credit for not only finding the skeleton, but also the gold.”

Tobin glared Abby. “You’re canceling her dig to mine for gold? You’re her boss! I thought you were an archaeological director, or whatever you are, not a gold miner. How could you allow this happen?”

“Ranger Heath, please-” Abby started.

“That Jill woman said that no one could mine anything without consent from the mayor and the archaeologists, and I know Chris doesn’t agree with this, so did you sign off on this?” Tobin asked.

Abby looked at Tobin and then at Christen. “Ms. Ellis has offered a significant amount of funding for the center. They’re going to build us a new lab, and you’ll be able to examine the skeleton there. Christen, think about it – state of the art equipment, unlimited time…you’ll be fully funded for a long as you need. It’s everything we ever wanted.”

Christen stared at Abby. “I don’t believe this, Abby. I thought we cared about science, not money”, she said.

“Science needs money to progress”, Abby said. “Isn’t that what science is all about? Progress?”

“So you’re gonna destroy this forest to mine the gold, is that it?” Tobin said, incredulous, to both Abby and Carli. “Is that why you brought the fucking military here? That’s what you call progress?!”

“Ranger Heath”, Abby said, “DAPO will proceed in the least invasive manner possible.”

“Dynamite! That seems pretty invasive to me!” Tobin yelled.

“Abby – what the hell happened?” Christen said, remembering Abby’s tone of voice during their last phone call before she had come out. She stared at Abby and then glared at Carli. “What did these people say to you, huh?”

“Alright, enough of this!” Carli snapped, then looked hard at Christen. “Look, we get the gold, the center gets money, and you get your skeleton and your Nobel Fucking Prize. Everybody wins.”

“What about the forest? How does the forest win?” Tobin seethed at Carli, who ignored her and continued to stare at Christen.

Christen stared back hard at Carli. “I don’t want a Nobel Prize if it comes like this, at the expense of destroying this forest and upending this town.”

“Jesus, you fucking scientist people!” Carli spat, out of patience. “What the fuck do you want then, huh!?”

“I want you to get out of my forest”, Tobin growled at Carli.

“No one’s talking to you, hillbilly girl”, Carli scoffed at Tobin.

“Hey!” Tobin snapped. She’d had enough of this derisive, abusive woman. She took a step towards Carli, but Carli stepped back and drew a Glock 17, semi-automatic pistol. She pointed it right at Tobin’s face and glared hard at Christen.

“You better put a leash on your bitch, or I’m gonna put her down”, Carli said to Christen in a menacing voice.

“No!” Christen shouted, then moved in front of Tobin. “Just…calm down” she said to Carli, stunned. Tobin froze, eyes wide in terror, staring at Carli.

“Jesus, Carli”, Abby said, shocked, hands in the air. “What on earth are you doing?”

Carli spat on the ground. “I’m doing my job, Director, as Ms. Ellis’s right hand, and head of security for DAPO”, she said, glaring at Abby, then looked at the group. “This little discussion is over”, she said, then motioned to some nearby soldiers. “Escort these two out of here, now.” Three soldiers approached, taking Christen and Tobin by the arm and roughly leading them out of the site area.

“Abby!” Christen called out over her shoulder.

Abby started to follow them, but Carli stopped her, gun still out.

“Stay here”, Carli said.

‘What the hell is going on, Carli?” Abby asked, face white, realizing the situation had gone from money to violence. “What are you going to do with them?” 

“Don’t worry about them”, Carli said. “They’ll be fine, as long as your archaeologist and that irritating little country bumpkin mutt keep their traps shut and don’t say anything dumb. You just worry about signing the papers we need you to sign to get this mining expedition officially authorized”, she said, then holstered her gun, pulled out a pen, and motioned to one of her associates, who approached with some paperwork.

********

“Are you okay, Tobie?” Christen asked as they neared town. They had hiked back to the center and driven back in stunned silence.

“That Carli woman pointed a gun at me…us”, Tobin said quietly. “What kind of heartless person does that, Chris? No, I’m not okay.”

Christen looked over at her and then pulled over and parked the car. “Come here, baby”, she said, and leaned over and wrapped her arms around Tobin.

“I can’t believe what’s happening”, Tobin sniffed.

“I know, baby, and I’m so sorry”, Christen said. She held Tobin for another moment and then gave her a kiss. “Let’s get home, okay?” she said. Tobin nodded, and Christen started up the car again. She put her hand on Tobin’s as she drove and gave it a light squeeze. They passed the sign for Tehacha on the right. “We’re almost back in town. Let’s just go back to your place. We can take a shower, have something to eat, and then try to figure out what to do next. I think we just need to relax for a bit, clear our minds. I’ll give you a nice massage when we get back.” She looked over at Tobin and gave her a comforting smile to lighten the mood.

Tobin looked over and smiled slightly back. “Thanks for trying to cheer me up”, she said, and was about to say, “That sounds nice”, when they pulled onto Main Street and saw a bunch of townspeople congregating near the fountain, outside the mayor’s office in town hall. Several news cameras were also set up.

“What’s all this?” Christen said.

“I have no idea”, Tobin said, then “Wait – that’s our governor, Roy Cooper”, she said, as she spotted a man in a suit standing on the steps of town hall. Next to him was Mayor Higgins, who was looking around uncomfortably.

“What’s the governor of your state doing here?” Christen said as she parked the car, when she spotted Jill coming up the steps next to the mayor. “Uh oh.” 

“Is that-” Tobin said, as she saw Jill. “God, I’m gonna kill that woman!” Tobin said. She started to get out quickly but Christen stopped her.

“Tobie – wait”, Christen said, looking at the soldiers who were with Jill. “I don’t want anyone else to point a gun at you, okay?” She put her hand gently on Tobin’s arm. “Let’s just see what’s going on.” Tobin stared at Christen for a moment and then nodded her head, and the two women got out of the car.

“My fellow Tehachans”, Mayor Higgins began. “Thank you for gathering today. I’m sure most of you have heard the rumors by now that a startling discovery was made a couple of days ago in Nantahala National Forest. Here to talk more about it is the governor of our great state, Roy Cooper.” Jill clapped, and the mayor motioned to the governor.

“Good day, fine people of Tehacha”, Governor Cooper said, addressing the crowd in his governor voice. “Two hundred years ago, prospectors from the east ventured inland and came across gold in Nantahala National Forest, and this area was settled. Many people came and went, but some stayed. Those proud, adventurous folks who stayed were your ancestors. They settled this area, and founded your town which is known today as Tehacha, which comes from the Taquanee Native American Tribe language for “shimmering land”, no doubt a reference to the gold found in the forest.” The mayor paused for a moment and then continued. “This town was started by gold, and that gold was thought to have been all mined out over a hundred years ago. However, two days ago, an amazing discover was made. As Mayor Higgins said, you may have heard rumors the last couple of days, but today is truly a momentous day, because I am here to confirm that, through the combined efforts of the park staff, the Stanford Archaeological Center, The University of North Carolina, and the Department of Anthropology and Prehistory Organization…gold has been discovered here once again!” A murmur rushed through the crowd and the governor smiled. “Now, it’s very early stages, and we have a lot to figure out, but I can tell you that this is a wonderful opportunity for this town.”

“Governor!” someone shouted. “Are you going to be mining the gold?”

“Well, there’s still a lot to figure out, but as of now, that is the intention, yes”, the governor said.

“Jim, will mining change our town?” someone else asked the mayor. He started to answer, but the governor answered for him.

“Mining will bring new opportunities, and could make Tehacha world famous for the great and historic mining town that it is.”

“We don’t want to change this town! No Corporate America!” a man yelled, and others joined in.

The governor put his hands up to calm the crowd. “I’m sure we can find a way to preserve the town’s history while also grow its industry.”

“Why is the military here?” a woman asked, asking about the presence of men and women in black combat fatigues.

“They're just a security team as a safety measure, ma’am”, the governor replied.

“Should we be mining at all?” a man yelled.

“Tehacha was founded on gold mining. Mining is what brought this town into existence. There’s no reason we can’t continue that great tradition. With our modern-day procedures and technology, we can mine much more safely than we ever have before. We can grow this great town, elevating its status as the important historical town it should be recognized as”, the governor said. “And now, I’d like to turn it over to the CEO of the Department of Anthropology and Prehistory Organization, Jill Ellis, for a few words.”

“Thank you, Governor Cooper”, she said, beaming at the governor, and then turned to address the crowd. “Wow, what a lovely town you all have. I’ve been here less than two days, and I must say – I’ve just fallen in love with it here. Now, I realize some of you may have some anxiety over the discovery of gold and what might happen, but let me assure you, this will be to the benefit of the town. I’d like to thank Governor Cooper, Mayor Higgins, the University of North Carolina, and most importantly, all of you. I can’t wait to get to know your lovely town better”, Jill smiled wide.

“Thank you Ms. Ellis, thank you Mayor Higgins, and thank you all for your attention today”, Governor Cooper said. People started shouting more questions, and Governor Cooper, Mayor Higgins, Jill, and Jill’s security detail retreated back into the town hall.

“Oh my god”, Christen said.

“God, I hate her”, Tobin fumed. “C’mon.”

“Wait, where are we going?”

“I need to talk to the mayor. I know him”, Tobin said. She took Christen’s hand and led her around to the side of town hall. “I know a side door in”, she said. They walked for another twenty seconds. “Here it is”, she said, then opened the door and pulled Christen in. They walked down a hallway that led to a larger foyer, then turned the corner and saw Governor Cooper, Mayor Higgins and Jill walking together.

“Mayor Higgins!” Tobin yelled.

The mayor looked up. “Tobin”, he said surprised.

“They’re blowing up the forest!” Tobin blurted out.

“What?” Mayor Higgins said.

“Her people are blowing up the forest”, Tobin pointed at Jill.

“My dear, whatever are you talking about?” Jill asked innocently.

“You know what I’m talking about”, Tobin growled. “Your people are blowing up the forest.”

Jill laughed incredulously. “That’s utterly ridiculous”, she said.

“What’s going on here?” Mayor Higgins asked, confused. He looked at the governor and then at Jill. “Is this true?”

“They’re destroying the forest”, Tobin said, then turned to Jill, “and your henchwoman Carli pulled a gun on me and my girlfriend!”

“Young lady, this is utterly ridiculous-” Jill started to say, but Tobin, who’d had enough, lunged at her. Two of Jill’s guards grabbed Tobin, and one of them leveled his gun at her.

“Whoa”, Governor Cooper said, taken aback.

“Get your hands off of her!” Christen yelled, pulling Tobin away from the guards. “Put your fucking gun down!”

“Wait, are you…Dr. Press?” Mayor Higgins said. “I-I-I thought you worked for her…” He said, pointing to Jill, who tauntingly winked at Tobin.

“Mayor, yes, I am Dr. Christen Press, and it’s true, they’re-” Christen was about to say “blowing up the forest”, when Tobin lunged at Jill again.

“My word!” Jill said, as Jill’s guards moved in front of her, and Christen held Tobin back.

“You snake!” Tobin yelled at Jill.

“Mayor, governor – this woman has had it out for me since the moment I got here”, Jill said. “And now, I’m starting to fear for my life. Are you going to do something to prevent her from harming me, or should I have my men do that?”

“You’ve gotta do something to stop this!” Tobin yelled at the governor.

“I…uh..am not quite sure of the, uh…situation that you speak of”, Governor Cooper stumbled out.

“It’s true”, Christen said. They’re blow-”

“Okay, Jim – I think we’ve heard about enough of this”, Governor Cooper said. “Let’s wrap this up.”

The mayor looked at the governor, then at Jill and then at “Tobin – I don’t know what’s going on with any blowing-up-the-forest, but you can’t just go around lunging at people. I promise I will look into it.”

“’Look into it’?! Jim - what? Did they get you too?!” Tobin yelled at the mayor.

“Tobin”, the mayor put his hands up. “Perhaps you should just go home-”

“You’re not going to get away with this!” Tobin yelled, pointing at Jill. Jill smirked at Tobin and winked again. “And this is your town, Jim! Our town! Do something!” Tobin yelled, as Christen dragged Tobin away.

********

“Well Jim, that was quite a scene earlier”, Governor Cooper said, lighting a cigar in Mayor Higgin’s office.

“What was Tobin talking about, ‘blowing up the forest’? What did she mean by that?” Mayor Higgins asked.

“That woman seems quite unstable”, Jill said, sipping a drink.

“Governor, Ms. Ellis”, Higgins began. “Like I said when you first came, I gave you the courtesy of hearing you out, but I’m against mining the gold and the ensuing growth of this town that’s sure to come from it.”

“Look, Jim”, Cooper said, “Let’s be frank. Our state’s in the shitter financially. We’re up to our eyeballs in debt. But we’re sitting on a goldmine over there, literally”, he said, pointing to the forest. “This could be huge for us. Think of the good. New programs. New infrastructure. New jobs. The tourism – my god, can you imagine it?”

“But it’s going to change this town forever, Governor. New jobs mean more people. More people means we need more things, more stores, more products, more housing. In the blink of an eye, this place will look like Disneyland”, Higgins said. “This place is one of the last historic frontier towns in the country. It’s history, right here, governor.”

The governor stared at the mayor for a moment and then said, “Jim, listen – I know you and your townsfolk would like to keep Tehacha like Frontierland until the end of time, but let’s be honest – your town needs some money. You get behind this, and I can make sure a good chunk flows your way.” He smiled and then said, “I know y’all don’t want Starbucks and Walmarts and Apple stores here, but, well…let’s be honest – everyone wants fresh water and electricity…right?”

Higgins looked at Cooper and cocked his head. “Governor…?”

“Look, Jim, let’s level right now: once the word is out about this gold, people are gonna come a’runnin’. Now, you can either have the gold extracted in a proper and orderly fashion, and you and your town can profit from that, or you can have a bunch of lawless, trigger-happy lootin’ bandits descend upon this place and shoot, stab, rape and kill each other and anyone in their way to get whatever gold they can get their hands on. Would you rather have a few new restaurants and condos, or high noon shootouts in your streets and hoodlums running around your forest?” Higgins didn’t say anything, so Cooper kept on. “This state needs to progress, Jim, and your little town is a part of this state. So, you can either get behind this, or we can move forward without you. But either way – we’re pulling every last nugget of gold out of that forest”, Cooper said.

“Sometimes you have to crack eggs to make omelets”, Jill said smiling.

Mayor Higgins looked at Jill and Cooper. “Your man threatened Tobin with a gun”, he said to Jill, “and now, you’re threatening my town?” he said to Cooper.

“Progress”, Cooper said, and smiled.

********

“Tobie, please”, Christen said. She and Tobin were at Tobin’s place.

“You said nothing bad would happen, Chris!”

“I know, baby, but-”

“But bad things are happening!”

“I had no idea it was going to go like this.”

“God, you…people!” Tobin hissed.

“You people?” Christen repeated. “Tobie – I’m nothing like Jill and the rest of DAPO, and maybe even your governor and your mayor!” She moved to put her arms around Tobin, but Tobin pushed her away.

Tobin glared at Christen, tears in her eyes. “I wish none of you had ever come here.”

“What?” Christen gasped.

“I said I wish none of you had ever come here! “Tobin yelled at Christen. “Everything was fine before y’all showed up! Now this place is going to change forever, and it’s your fault!” All of the confusion, worry, and hurt caught up to Tobin, and she just snapped.

“Tobie, wait-”

“Get out!” Tobin yelled. 

“Please”, Christen said, her voice lowering. “Babe…”

“Don’t call me that!”

“Tobie, I want to help-”

“Just get out!” Tobin yelled again.

Christen stared at Tobin. She wanted so bad to wrap Tobin up in her arms and tell her everything was going to be okay, but Tobin was right. She had said that already, and she had been wrong. And Tobin was upset. Very upset. “Fine, Tobin. I’ll leave, if that’s what you really want right now. But just know that I care about you, and I care about this town”, Christen said. “Look, I know you’re upset, and I completely understand, but I want to help.” She stared at Tobin for a moment, and then said, “Tobin-”

“Just…go, Christen”, Tobin said, head down.


	10. Chapter 10

Christen left Tobin’s place in a daze, heartbroken. The woman she had fallen for was broken, and her dig was pretty much up in smoke. She reached into her pocket for her cell to call Abby, and then realized her cell wasn’t there. She had left it at the campsite, when they had hurried out to see what the explosion was. I need to find Abby, she thought and went to the motel.

“Abby!” Christen pounded on Abby’s door. No answer.

“Doctor!”

Christen turned around, and there was Rose, coming towards her.

“Rose!”

“I’ve been trying to call you”, Rose said. 

“I’m sorry, I lost my cell- Rose…it’s been the craziest day”, Christen said, then all of a sudden, things caught up with her, and she started to break down and cry. Tears welled up in her eyes, and the sobs started coming out of her mouth.

“Doctor…? Rose said, putting her hand on Christen’s arm. “Christen?”

“I-I-I I’m sorry”, Christen said, wiping tears from her face.

“Is everything alright?” Rose asked.

“No, it’s been just…the craziest day…Tobin and I, we camped in the forest last night, then we heard dynamite this morning, and we went to the site, and we saw DAPO preparing to mine for gold, and then that Carli woman pulled a gun on me and Tobin-”

“What?!” Rose exclaimed, but Christen, floodgates now open, kept going.

“-and then we came back into town, and we saw the mayor, and Jill, and the governor, and they were talking about how they were getting ready to mine the gold, and then Tobin and I went to talk to the mayor, and then Jill’s security guards pulled another gun on Tobin, and then we went to Tobin’s place, and she started yelling at me saying it’s all my fault, and that she wished I never came here, and then she told me to leave…” Christen rambled out, between sobs.

“Oh my god”, Rose said, taking it all in. “I’m so sorry”, she said. “I know about the site. We were on our way in, and we were like halfway there, when a bunch of security guys coming the other way told us to turn around and go back to the ranger station.”

“Where is all of our equipment? The skeleton?”

“Don’t know, probably still back at the site.”

“Shit”, Christen said. She paused for a moment to collect herself. “I need to find Abby.”

“I spoke with her a bit ago. She’s at the mayor’s office with the mayor.”

“Okay, let’s go”, Christen said. She and Rose started off on foot, and a few minutes later they were at the town hall. They found the mayor’s office and barged in. Mayor Higgins and Abby were there, talking.

“Abby!” Christen yelled. She walked angrily towards Abby, but Higgins stopped her.

“Whoa, whoa whoa”, Higgins said.

“Christen”, Abby put her hands up. “I’m so sorry.”

“What the hell, Abby? You sold us out! You sold this town out!”

“Christen, I didn’t realize it was going to end up like this”, Abby said.

“Guns! Those people were pointing guns at us! And they’re going to take that forest for every piece of gold in there, and they’re going to set up shop in this town, and nothing’s ever going to be the same here!” Christen yelled.

Abby stared at Christen for a moment, and then said. “You’re right, Christen. That’s exactly what they want to do. And I didn’t realize it until it was too late. I was trying to figure out a way to make this work for everyone, but it looks like the only people this is going to work out for are DAPO.”

“And you. They’re going to give money to the center, and build a brand new lab, right?”

“Well, yes, but-”

“But nothing, Abby! Don’t you see? There’s nothing these people won’t do! Sooner or later, your center is going to end up as nothing more than treasure hunters for these people! You’ll find, they’ll loot.” Abby didn’t say anything, so Christen kept on. “Look, Abby – I get that the center needs money, that’s just business. But at what cost? The cost of destroying history, like what they’ll be doing to this town?” Christen took a deep breath and then said, “We got into archaeology to study history, and maybe even rewrite history. But not at the expense of erasing history.” She looked Abby in the eyes and said, “Abby, please – we need to do something.”

Abby stared at Christen, her words sinking in, and then said, “I hear you Christen, and you’re right. But I’m really not sure what we can do at this point.” She paused for a moment and then said, “After you left the site, Carli made me sign some papers. Unfortunately now, from my end, the mining expedition is authorized.”

“Ughh…Christ”, Christen said.

“That Carli woman had a gun, Christen.”

“I know, I haven’t forgotten”, Christen said.

“But also, the governor’s going to sign off on the mining as well”, Higgins said. “So, even if I’m against it, the governor’s authority outweighs mine, and with Director Wambach’s official signature, the expedition will go through.”

“So, there’s nothing we can do?” Christen asked.

“Actually, there is”, Alex said, bursting through the door.

“Alex”, Christen said. She paused and then said, “Do you ever knock?”

“Wait – were you eavesdropping?” Rose asked Alex.

Alex ignored the questions and smiled at Rose. “Hi”, she breathed out and gave Rose a little wave. Rose mouthed “hi” back.

“Uh…Abby, Mayor Higgins…this is Alex Morgan, from the ranger station”, Christen said.

“Hi Mayor Higgins, nice to meet you!” Alex said enthusiastically, pumping Higgin’s hand. She looked over at Rose and smiled and whispered loudly, “I’m meeting the mayor!” and then looked at Abby and Christen.” And hi Christen’s boss! And hi Christen!”

“And I thought I was cheerful”, Rose muttered under her breath.

“So…Alex…what were you saying? About something we can do?” Christen said.

“Oh, yeah”, Alex said, then looked around the room. Wait, where’s Tobin?”

“Uh…she’s a home”, Christen said.

“Home? Why is she not here, with you?” Alex asked.

“Well…we got into a little fight…” Christen trailed off. 

“Oooooo…lover’s quarrel!” Alex squealed. “Let me guess – she blames you for bringing everyone here to this town, right?”

Christen stared at Alex. “Uh…yeah…something like that”, she said, partially wondering if Alex was psychic or if she just knew Tobin that well.

“Okay, well, I think I know a way to maybe stop all of this, but um…she needs to be here. So I’m gonna call her”, Alex said. She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket, then said, “Damn – no reception.”

“Try my land line”, Higgins said.

“Oh yeah, I think Tobin may not have her cell, either”, Christen said, remembering that Tobin may have left her cell at their campsite this morning as well.

“Good thing we have landlines, huh?” Alex said to Christen. “Landline to landline!” she sang out as she dialed Tobin’s landline.

“You have Tobin’s number memorized?” Rose asked. No one remembers numbers these days.

“Well, yeah”, Alex said. “I don’t have that many numbers in my phone. I mean, there’s not many people here and much around”, she said. She winked at Rose, who smiled and rolled her eyes.

********

“Tobie”, Christen said, when Tobin walked in the door.

“Heyyyy”, Tobin said. She looked at Christen and then walked over to her and said, “I’m sorry I lost it on you earlier.”

Christen stared at Tobin and then wrapped her arms around her. “I’m sorry too, Tobie, for everything that’s happening.”

Tobin smiled at Christen. “I know, and it’s not your fault”, she said, then leaned in to Christen and gave her a gentle kiss.

“Whoa, wait – she wasn’t kidding when she said ‘lover’s quarrel’” Abby said, but Alex cut her off.

“Okay, guys, you can get a room later”, Alex said. “So, I think there’s a way to stop the mining.”

“How?” Tobin said.

“So, to mine like this, there’s tons of paperwork and permits. There’s no way DAPO got all of that approved already in the 24 hours since they showed up. So, they’re definitely not doing this by the books. Anyway, first, we’ll need to get in touch with the United States Forest Service. They’re part of the Department Of Agriculture, the highest authority in the United States when it comes to national parks land management, and Nantahala is a national park, so it falls under their jurisdiction.”

“Wait - how do you know this?” Tobin asked.

“I was a Government Law major in college, with a minor in Forestry”, Alex said proudly, and Rose raised her eyebrows and smiled at her. “What, you thought I was just a nosy little Nellie with a wild imagination and a pretty face?” Alex teased Tobin.

“I guess not”, Tobin said, smiling.

“Okay, so once we do that, we’ll need the mayor and Director Wambach to issue a joint statement condemning the mining”, Alex continued.

“Well, unfortunately, I already signed my approval”, Abby said.

“You’ll have to undo it.”

Abby looked around the room for a moment, the faces staring at her, and then said, “okay”, but then turned to Christen and said, “You know what this will do, right? DAPO will pull all of their funding from the center.”

“I know” Christen said. “But we have to do this. It’s the right thing to do. We can find other funding, build another center. One that’s not funded by money made from ruthless acts.”

“Yeah, I don’t want anything to do with these assholes”, Rose said. “I’d rather be jobless than work for a place funded by them.”

Abby smiled faintly nodded at Rose and then turned back towards Christen. “You’ll probably lose your chance at a Nobel Prize. DAPO still has all of our gear and the skeleton.”

“Wait – I thought they said you were going to stay to see that they packed up properly.”

“Well, I was planning on doing that, but after Carli pulled a gun…well, as soon as I signed the papers, I didn’t want to stay there any longer than I had to, so I got out of there”, Abby said. “Anyway, if we do this, move against them, they’ll never give the skeleton back.”

“I know”, Christen said. “It’s okay.” She took a deep breath. “I always wanted a Nobel Prize”, she said wistfully… “but it’s not worth sacrificing this town”, she said resolutely. She looked over at Tobin, who smiled back at Christen, and squeezed her hand.

Abby smiled at the couple, and then turned to Higgins. “The governor’s going to cut funding to your town if we do this.”

Higgins looked at Tobin and Alex, and then back to Abby and smiled a wry smile. “I bet Cooper didn’t even know this town existed before two days ago. We’ve made it this far without his help. We’ll keep on.” He paused for a moment and then said, “Hell, this town was founded by folks who were tough, adventurous and hardy”. He looked around the room and then said, “I reckon the folks who live here now are no different.” He smiled.

“Well, sounds like we’re going to do this”, Abby said. “At exactly what expense yet, I’m not quite sure.” She paused and then said, “At any rate, we’ll be up against a wall. This isn’t going to be easy. We’re up against a governor and a large, well-funded organization. Plus, like I said, I’ve already signed my approval on the mining expedition.”

“You did what?” Tobin said.

“Tobie”, Christen said. “Carli made Abby do it at gunpoint. “Abby – can’t you just say you were at gunpoint?”

“I could, but there’s no proof.”

“Actually”, Alex smiled, “That’s not entirely accurate.”

Tobin stared at Alex. “What do you mean?”

Alex took out her phone. “Well, I, um…I got video of everything.” 

“You got video of everything?” Tobin gasped.

“Yeah – I was up early hiking, and I was near the site, and I heard people, so I went up to the bluffs on the other side of the creek, and that’s when I saw all these people, and so I hid for a bit to check in out, and I don’t know, it looked…weird, not right…so I just started recording, you know, ‘cause I’m nosy, and then there was a huge explosion, and I jumped, oh my god it was scary, but I kept recording, that’s when I saw Abby talking to that mean mercenary-looking woman, and then I saw you guys, and I got it recorded that the woman pulled her gun out and pointed it at Tobin, O-M-G…I wanted to beat her up so bad, nobody threatens my Tobito Bobito, but anyway, I saw the security guards kick you guys out of the site, so I stayed for another minute, recording, and then I left too. So yeah, I guess I recorded everything…” Alex trailed off and then shrugged.

“Oh my god, Alex, you are the best!” Tobin said. She hugged her fellow ranger and then looked at Higgins. “Will this help?”

“Well, I’m not an expert, but I’d say it can’t hurt”, Higgins said. “I mean, if DAPO was supposed to get permits before they started, and we have video of them starting already, blowing up the forest, then maybe this will at least be enough to get the federal government to stop the mining in progress right now.”

“I agree”, Abby said.

Tobin smiled at them, tears starting to form in her eyes. She leaned into Christen, who, seeing Tobin tear up, started to tear up herself. Tobin cried happy for a moment, and then looked at Alex. “Wow, it was really lucky you were hiking close to the site, out of all places in the forest.”

Alex smiled slightly, and then said, “Well, truth be told…it wasn’t by accident.”

“What do you mean?” Tobin asked.

“Well, um…I was coming to see Rose”, Alex said, uncharacteristically sheepish.

Rose looked at Alex. “Me?”

“I wanted to surprise you with some breakfast”, Alex said, almost shyly. “And, maybe see if you could get away for a bit.”

Rose smiled at Alex and mouthed ‘thank you’. Christen smiled at the two of them and then said, “Wait…’get away’?” she repeated. “Is that some kind of ranger pick-up move or something?” she asked, and then looked at Tobin, who just kind of smiled and shrugged.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, this is it. I was trying to figure out the best way to finish off this story, but instead of getting into a long drawn-out court case turn or something, I thought I’d serve up the ending in a slice-of-life kind of way and let your imagination fill in the rest.

2 months later

“There they are”, Tobin said. She and Christen were at the diner, waiting for Rose and Alex to show up for a late Saturday lunch. Just a couple other people were in the diner, plus Ray, the owner.

“Hellooooo!” Alex sang out as she entered. “C’mon!” she said to Rose, pulling her by the hand.

“Jeez, and I thought I had energy”, Rose said, smiling. They walked over to Tobin and Christen’s table and sat down.

“She’s just a bundle of energy, isn’t she?” Rose said to Tobin, who smiled and nodded knowingly.

“I’m high on life!” Alex said, and everyone laughed. “How’s UNC, Christen?”

“It’s good”, Christen said. Christen had taken an adjunct professor position at UNC in the anthropology department. “I’m there Tuesday thru Thursday.”

“But when you’re not, you still come back here to be with my Tobito Bobito”, Alex said, smiling.

“Indeed I do”, Christen said, smiling back, then smiled at Tobin and gave her a kiss. On Friday mornings Christen drove the four hour drive from Chapel Hill to Tehacha to spend Friday afternoon until Monday afternoon with Tobin. Sometimes she gave an archaeology lecture at the park ranger station on the weekends. “How’s D.C.?” Christen asked Rose. Rose had taken a position at Georgetown University and was just in town for the weekend.

“Good. Although the last time this one came up to visit I fell a week behind in work”, Rose said, nudging Alex, “and I spent like waaaaaaay too much money.”

“Hey – it’s not my fault a drink is like eighteen bucks there!” Alex said. “Plus, I needed new shoes. We don’t have many stores around here. They look nice though, right?” she asked, raising her leg so everyone could take a look. They were cute red strappy high heels that Rose had bought her. Rose playfully rolled her eyes, and Alex leaned over and gave her a playful kiss. Christen and Tobin laughed.

“You talk with Abby?” Christen asked Rose.

“Yeah-” Rose started respond when Ray called out, “Hey, you guys are on”, and turned up the TV in the diner.

“And now, more on the fascinating story of the Tehacha gold mine”, an anchor began, “a modern day gold rush story, where gold was found in Nantahala National Forest near the small town of Tehacha, North Carolina. Archaeologists working on excavating a prehistoric skeleton discovered the gold near where they were digging. The mining of the gold was supposed to be overseen by the United States Forest Service, the judicial body of the federal government responsible for overseeing national parks, and carried out after official permits had been acquired.” The footage switched to the video Alex captured. “But after a video surfaced showing an explosion of what is believed to be dynamite, and a woman wielding a gun at the site, the excavation was halted.” The footage switched to Jill and Carli leaving a courthouse. “Jill Ellis, the CEO of the Department Of Anthropology and Prehistory Organization, and Carli Lloyd, the organization’s head of security, have been indicted on charges of illegal mining.” The footage switched to the governor leaving the Capitol Building, ignoring a slew of reporters shouting questions. “And Governor Roy Cooper of North Carolina is also under investigation for allegedly allowing the illegal mining to start before permits had been acquired. Sources close to the investigation say that Cooper may have been trying to obtain the gold before it could be properly acquired by the federal government.” The footage switched to a meeting in Tehacha Town Hall. “Earlier this week, Dr. Christen Press, the archaeologist who discovered the gold and the skeleton, met with Tehacha Mayor Jim Higgins, as well as members of the United States Forest Service, to lay out plans to mine the gold in a legal and orderly fashion.”

“We will proceed with the mining, but work closely with Mayor Higgins and Dr. Press to make sure the gold is mined in accordance with their wishes”, a member of the Forest Service said, speaking into a microphone at the meeting.

“I approve the mining plan, as long as we are able to preserve the historic nature of the town”, Mayor Higgins said at the meeting.

The footage switched to Christen talking to an interviewer, her title onscreen underneath her. “It’s important that the gold is mined in accordance with the wishes of Tehacha, and we do our best to make sure that, in the process of extracting the gold, we’re not erasing something much more valuable – the history of this special town.”

“You guys are famous”, Ray said and smiled. Like many locals, he’d been following the news after the story had broken.

“That was my video!” Alex exclaimed proudly.

“Everyone knows that, hon”, Rose said and rolled her eyes, and Alex stuck out her tongue.

“You look good, discoverer”, Tobin said, leaning into Christen.

“Well, you’re actually the real discoverer”, Christen said, giving Tobin a quick kiss.

“Okay, sickly sweet”, Rose said, and Alex swatted her arm playfully.

“Oh, look who’s talking”, Alex said to Rose, then turned to Tobin and Christen. “You should have seen this one doting on me, when I came up to D.C.”, Alex said, then looked back at Rose and batted her eyelashes.

“Okay, whatever”, Rose said, and Tobin and Christen laughed. “Hey, are you still writing your book?” Rose asked Christen. After the gold discovery, Christen had been contacted by a few publishing houses. She hadn’t signed with one, but she had started writing a book about the discovery, and ethics in archaeology.

“Yeah, when I have time, but, well, it’s going slow, with all the meetings we’ve had, plus classes.”

“That’s so cooool”, Alex said to Christen, who smiled.

“It is cool”, Tobin said.

“So, you talk with Abby?” Christen asked Rose again.

“A couple weeks ago. We keep in touch by email. She says she likes being at Hollowman”, Rose said. Hollowman Institute was a think-tank based in D.C.

“Yeah, she likes it there”, Christen said. She and Abby had patched things up after the whole incident, and these days they were both working to help sort out the mining, but outside of work they didn’t talk much.

“So, where does all the gold go? Like, once it gets mined, or whatever?” Alex asked.

“Well, I think some of the proceeds will be used to fund education programs and national parks. The rest of it I think is going to end up in the Smithsonian”, Christen said.

“Well, if it’s for education or nature, then it’s money put to good use”, Tobin said. 

“Yeah, and not a fourth house for that asshole Jill”, Rose said. Everyone laughed, and then Rose looked at Christen. “It’s crazy, you know…you could have done anything, worked for anyone, gone anywhere, after what happened”, she said. “Yet, here you are.”

Christen was silent for a moment. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be”, she said, and squeezed Tobin. “This”, she said, kissing Tobin, and then gesturing around, “is gold, right here.”

“Awwwww”, Alex and Rose said together.

“Thank you, babe”, Tobin said, and gave Christen a sweet kiss.

********

Tobin and Christen stopped at the precipice overlooking the creek. Evening sunlight spread across the top of the forest, bathing the autumn colored leaves in a golden hue. The weather was not as hot as the blazing summer, but still warm. They removed their backpacks and drank from a canteen.

“Hey you”, Christen said. She moved behind Tobin and wrapped her up in her arms.

“Hey babe”, Tobin said.

“It’s beautiful”, Christen said.

“Yes, it sure is”, Tobin said. They stared out at the top of the forest for a moment, and then Tobin said, “You never got your Nobel prize.”

“I don’t need it”, Christen said, resolutely. “There are things more important than Nobel prizes. Or gold”, she said.

Tobin smiled, then turned around in Christen’s arms so she was facing Christen and put her arms around Christen’s neck. “Thank you for helping to save this place.”

“Of course, babe”, Christen said, looking into Tobin’s eyes.

“Tobin smiled and then leaned in for a deep kiss.” You’re sweaty”, she said, then giggled.

“Oh boy”, Christen said, laughing back.

“So…” Tobin said suggestively, then looked down at the creek. “Wanna cool off?”

THE END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the story.
> 
> Now, if you have ever read any of my other USWNT stories, you know that I often include a theme in them. Part of the reason I wrote this story was to explore the theme of conservation, and to present a POV of how important it is to preserve both heritage and natural resources. I used the fictional town of Tehacha in part because I don’t know anything about that part of the country, and also, using a fictional town allowed me to write freely without having to hold to factual accuracies (thank goodness for fiction, right?). By doing so, I could write about a place conjured up purely in my mind – the prototypical “frontier town”, from a time past, untouched by chain stores, high rise buildings, traffic, and all of the other accoutrements of modern urban development.
> 
> As some of you know, I grew up in Hawaii, and I can tell you first hand that in my lifetime, Hawaii has changed significantly. Before my time, but not too long ago, Hawaii was very much an isolated, self-sustaining island-nation. Then along came new folks, and once the word was out about the gold (in Hawaii’s case, the gold was the land itself, both quality and position in the Pacific ocean, not to mention the warm weather), people came, development ensued, and things changed forever. And, from what I hear in stories from my older relatives, things were lost during urbanization that we will never get back – beaches, forests and valleys, and for much the local indigenous population, the land they lived on and the homes they grew up in. In many ways, the story of Tehacha represents Hawaii before mass industrialization; a small local population that can trace its lineage back generations, and a town that is largely a throwback, untouched by urban development, but, once discovered, had the mining proceeded with Jill at the helm, would have changed forever. And, if that had happened, unfortunately for Tehacha, that change would not necessarily have benefitted the local population (and unfortunately, that is the story for many local communities once development starts).
> 
> Our world is shrinking. The lands that were once untouchable or even uninhabited have been populated, and those that are populated are becoming more populated. Our cities grow larger, as does our overall population. Meanwhile, the earth has a finite set of resources, and our growing population, along with the greed of some who just can’t seem to get enough no matter how much they already have, are putting pressure on those resources, which in turn changes landscapes, cultures and histories. And, once again - once things change, they usually don’t go back.
> 
> Close your eyes for a moment, and imagine paradise… I’ll bet you didn’t just imagine yourself in the middle of a crowded urban jungle, and wherever you did just go in your imagination – beach, mountains, forest, somewhere else – probably didn’t have a ton of people around.
> 
> Progress is progress. Change is inevitable. Cities and high rises and chain restaurants are a reality of life for many of us. And it can be nice to have a coffee shop nearby, or a place that delivers pizza late night. But preserving our history and our natural resources is important as well. You can’t eat gold.
> 
> Mahalo again for reading, and fond aloha.


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